History
Founded in 2000 as the Northwest Wisconsin Knights as a Junior B team. In 2004, the Knights changed their name to the Wisconsin Mustangs. In 2006, their league was promoted to Tier III Junior A status by USA Hockey.
From 2001 until 2003, the Knights had an interleague relationship with the Canadian Superior International Junior Hockey League. The 2009-10 season saw them back in an interlock with the SIJHL.
On May 17, 2010, the Mustangs announced they were officially leaving the MNJHL, their players were released to a dispersal draft. Soon after they applied for entry into the SIJHL. After a couple months, they were allowed entry. The team dropped the Mustangs logo, colors, and name as the organization entered the new league and chose to go with the "Wilderness" moniker.
On September 17, 2010, the Wilderness played their first ever game as a full member of the SIJHL, on the road, against the Sioux Lookout Flyers. The Wilderness took the game 3-2. To record their first ever win as a full member of the league. On September 24, 2010, the Wilderness became the first American-based full membership SIJHL team to host a regular season game in the United States. The Wilderness defeated the Fort Frances Lakers 4-3. In 2011, the Wilderness won the league championship.
In the summer of 2012, the team relocated to Cloquet, Minnesota and changed their name to the Minnesota Wilderness.
On May 4, 2013, the Wilderness became the first American team in history to win the Dudley Hewitt Cup by defeating the St. Michael's Buzzers 4-3 in overtime in the Central Canada final. They will now become the first American team to compete directly for the Royal Bank Cup, the Canadian National Junior A championship.
After winning the Dudley Hewitt Cup, the Wilderness announced that the 2013 Royal Bank Cup will be their final foray in Canadian junior hockey as they will join the North American Hockey League at the beginning of the 2013-14 season.
Read more about this topic: Wisconsin Wilderness
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“A country grows in history not only because of the heroism of its troops on the field of battle, it grows also when it turns to justice and to right for the conservation of its interests.”
—Aristide Briand (1862–1932)