ST. PETERS, Mo. – The North Iowa Bulls’ farewell tour in the North American Tier 3 Hockey League is into the home stretch, as the team makes its way to the Fraser Cup championship tournament in suburban St. Louis, Missouri this week.
North Iowa defeated the Willmar WarHawks 4-2 in Sunday’s deciding Game 3 of the division finals, earning the West Division’s spot in the Fraser Cup Tournament. It’s the seventh time since 2013 that the Bulls have reached the NA3HL’s final weekend, and the team will be in the hunt for its fourth Fraser Cup (2013, ’14, ’16) and fourth national championship (2013, ’15, ’16).
The Bulls will play two games in three days in the pool rounds at the Fraser Cup, with the opening day off from competition on Thursday. Friday’s game pits the Bulls against the Sheridan Hawks in a rematch of the Bulls’ Holiday Showcase back in December – North Iowa defeated the Frontier Division champs twice at that event, and the two teams built their rosters alongside each other in August at their Main Tryout Camp in Mason City.
The next opponent for North Iowa is the East Division champ Northeast Generals, in their second-ever meeting with the Bulls. North Iowa walloped the Generals 5-1 in their only meeting in the 2018 NA3HL Showcase, and were one of the favorites heading into the 2020 postseason prior to the league’s COVID-19 shutdown.
Friday’s game will be played at 4 p.m., followed by Saturday afternoon’s contest at 2:30. The Sunday afternoon semifinals at 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. will pit the top team from the Bulls’ pool against the number-two team from the opposite pool, and vice versa. The other pool in the tournament features the Central Division champion Rochester Grizzlies, who won two of three exhibition games against North Iowa this season, and South Division representatives Oklahoma City and Texas. The Brahmas are still the defending Fraser Cup national champions, knocking out the Bulls in the 2019 semifinals on their way to their first NA3HL title.
Admission to the arena is free for all games, and all Fraser Cup games will be streamed exclusively on HockeyTV. Due to ongoing COVID concerns, the St. Peters Rec-Plex strongly encourages fans to wear face coverings inside the facility, and asks fans to maintain physical distance and not gather in large groups. Limited concessions will be available each day, and hand sanitizer stations will be set up throughout the building. High-traffic touch points will be sanitized continuously throughout the day.
Updated news and information on the North Iowa Bulls’ seventh trip to the Fraser Cup championship tournament are always available at www.northiowabulls.com, and by following the team’s social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.