Skinner leads Wilderness to NAHL final four

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This article was published 18/05/2023 (1242 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

While he wouldn’t call it a blur, Brandon’s Brett Skinner says his first season has been a bit of a process.

Originally announced as the associate coach of the NAHL’s Minnesota Wilderness in August after a five-year stint as an assistant coach for the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede, the 39-year-old was promoted to the role of head coach for the Wilderness ahead of the team’s training camp.

Nine months later, he’s leading the Wilderness into the Robertson Cup semifinal against the Oklahoma Warriors, which starts Friday in Blaine, Minn.

“There are some things that you feel like you are prepared for, but you really don’t know what it is going to be like until you go through it for the first time,” Skinner said. “I was lucky to have learned a lot from Scott Owens and Marty Murray while in Sioux Falls, especially when it comes to reinforcing systems and concepts every day when there are a lot of changes going on with the roster.

“I was a little bit more involved with player procurement early on and I had to get used to the adding and dropping of players here right away, but it’s all been positive. I’ve definitely enjoyed it and I’m grateful for the opportunity.”

It was a frantic first few months for Skinner, general manager Dave Boitz and assistant coach Kyle Brodie.

The Wilderness had to piece together a new roster as a result of players either aging out, leaving early for college or jumping up to the USHL.

“The start was definitely a grind as you would have new kids coming in from town that you had acquired from trades or had been cut from other teams,” Skinner said.

“It really wasn’t until our trade deadline in February when everything rounded into form. We got all of our new guys up and running … and we had some stability in the lineup. When you get that consistency, the guys are able to play.”

The Wilderness finished second in the Midwest Division with a 35-18-3-4 record.

They swept the Kenai River Brown Bears and upset the Wisconsin Windigo in four games in the quarterfinals to reach the semifinals for the first time since winning the league in 2015.

Skinner says that the team isn’t flashy, but they’ve settled into their roles and have executed their systems to perfection through the first two rounds.

“There’s a strong work ethic here and we’re getting contributions from top to bottom,” Skinner said. “If someone’s hurt, we have a guy ready to step in and do what’s needed.”

The Robertson Cup format has some similarities to the Memorial Cup or the Centennial Cup tournaments, as the last four teams compete at a neutral site.

The winner of the Warriors and Wilderness matchup will face either the Austin Bruins or the Maryland Black Bears in a one-game final on Tuesday.

Although this is Skinner’s first experience in this format, he’s able to draw from his time with the NCAA’s Denver Pioneers, where he won a pair of Frozen Four titles in 2004 and 2005.

“When you get to that point, you are often going up against teams that you haven’t even seen all season,” Skinner said.

“On the coaching side of things, we are able to pre-scout the likes of Kenai River and Wisconsin as we are in the same division as them, but now you are trying to spot different things on video and reach out to guys that you know who may have played them recently.”

If there is an advantage for the Wilderness, it’s the fact the Robertson Cup is taking place two hours southeast of their home base in Cloquet, Minn.

Granted, the Bruins are also two hours away from Blaine and each side is expected to have a strong contingent of fans.

“It’s a busy weekend but all four teams are in the same boat and hopefully the best one comes out on top,” Skinner said.

“We’re confident with the way that we are playing right now, but all we can do is focus on what we can control and see what happens.”

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