MASON CITY, Iowa – As the North Iowa Bulls look to make their first run to the North American Hockey League’s Robertson Cup playoffs, they will get plenty of looks at their Central Division counterparts as part of the 2022-23 schedule, released this afternoon.
North Iowa will begin its second season in the NAHL with a four-game stretch at the NAHL Showcase at the National Sports Center Super Rink in Blaine, Minnesota from Wednesday, September 14 to Saturday, September 17. Each NAHL team will play four games at that event, except for two teams, which will play only two games in Blaine and play a third against the United States National Team Development Program’s Under-17 team. Matchups and exact game dates and times for the NAHL Showcase will be revealed at a later date.
The Central Division schedule begins in earnest the following week, when the Bulls travel to Minot to square off against the Minotauros on Friday and Saturday, September 23 and 24. The 28-game home schedule begins the following Saturday, October 1 as part of a home-and-home against the archrival Austin Bruins.
Other key dates on the schedule include the first full home weekend of the season, Friday and Saturday, October 14 and 15 against the Minot Minotauros, as well an out-of-division weekend against the Springfield Jr. Blues on October 28 and 29. The Bulls make their return trip to Springfield on December 2 and 3. North Iowa is one of just four teams in the NAHL to be afforded out-of-division games this season, other than the NAHL Showcase.
The Bulls will play a handful of three-in-three weekends this season, starting with a Thursday night visit to the Austin Bruins on November 17 before the Bismarck Bobcats make their first visit to Mason City for the year on November 18 and 19. North Iowa heads into the holiday stretch with a home contest against the St. Cloud Norsemen on Thursday, December 15 before making the trip to St. Cloud on December 16 and 17. The Bruins welcome the Bulls back for the new year with another three-in-three weekend, starting with a Friday, December 30 contest at the Riverside Arena before North Iowa hosts Austin on December 31 and January 1.
The regular-season schedule ends with a six-game series between North Iowa and Bismarck over the final three weekends of the season, starting with a visit to the VFW Sports Center March 31 and April 1. The Bulls host the Bobcats the following weekend before Bismarck hosts its final two games of the year against North Iowa April 14 and 15.
North Iowa’s gameday schedule will also undergo a small but noticeable change – home games are now scheduled to begin at 7:10 p.m., rather than the 7:30 p.m. puck drops of years past. Exceptions to this include the Bulls’ December 15 game against St. Cloud (6:10 p.m.) and January 1 game against Austin (5:30 p.m.), and those game times are also subject to change. The Bulls will enjoy a weekend-heavy home slate this season with 12 Friday games at the Mason City Arena and 14 Saturday games on home ice.
2022-23 season tickets are on sale now, while single-game tickets will go on sale later this summer. Click here for details on, or to purchase, 2022-23 season tickets. Updated news and information on North Iowa Bulls hockey are always available at www.northiowabulls.com, and by following the team’s social media platforms on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.