By Kevin Scott
2021-22 Schedule: Full Season (Printable PDF) l Home Schedule (Printable PDF)
GREAT FALLS, Mont., July 20, 2021 —The Great Falls Americans Junior A team along with the North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) have released their North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL) regular season game schedule for the upcoming 2021-22 season.
The NA3HL, which is entering their 12th season, serves as one of two USA Hockey Tier III junior leagues that consists of five divisions and a total of 34 teams that will play 47 regular season contests from September 2021 until March 2022.
The schedule for the Americans (27-11-2-0 in the regular season and 30-13-2-0 including the playoffs) is highlighted by two teams that also reached the 2021 NA3HL Playoffs including the top-ranked Sheridan (WY) Hawks, who finished the regular season with just one loss (39-1-0-0 and 42-2-0-0 including the playoffs) and the Gillette (WY) Wild, who are coached by former Great Falls Americans Associate Coach, Ethan Hayes, who guided his squad in his first season in 2020-21 with an overall record of 24-17-1-1. The fourth tournament team was now the defunct Missoula Junior Bruins, who are now the South Dakota-based Badlands Sabres and join the eight-member Frontier Division this season (see story).
The top two teams in the Frontier Division during the 2020-21 (#1 Sheridan Hawks and #2 Great Falls Americans) will meet each six times on the ice with the first meeting set for Week 4 (October 1-2) of the regular season in Sheridan, Wyoming followed with their second head-to-head meeting (Week 6) on October 15th-16th in Wyoming and a home date with the Hawks in Great Falls on November 5-6. Before that rivalry, the Gillette Wild and Great Falls Americans will get their first rematch of the 2021 NA3HL Frontier Divisional Semi-Finals in which Great Falls took the best-of-three series, 2-1, in Week 3 with the Wild hosting Great Falls on September 24-25. The Americans and Wild will tangle on the ice six times. The newest member of the Frontier Division, the Badlands Sabres, based out of Rapid City, South Dakota, will visit the Great Falls Ice Plex on Thanksgiving Weekend (November 26-27) for a twin bill. The Americans will enter South Dakota for the first time on December 3-4. The Sabres will also be in Great Falls in January 2022. In addition to the Friday and Saturday night contests, the leagues also scheduled five Sunday games, one Wednesday and one Thursday game.
The league released the Frontier Division’s 44-regular season game schedule in addition to the other four divisions (Central, East, West, and South) on Tuesday, July 20, 2021. All regular season games, which begin on Sunday, September 5 and will end on Sunday, March 6, 2022, are subject to change. All teams will also play three regular season games (neutral site) at the league-wide 2021 NA3HL Showcase taking place on December 20-22, 2021, at the Super Rink in Blaine, Minnesota. Opponents will be chosen later (Willmar (MN) WarHawks, Mid Cities (TX) Jr. Stars, and the New Jersey Titans) (see press release).
“We are excited to announce our regular season schedule on time as we continue to get back to normal in 2021-22, which includes one of our busiest and most exciting seasons to date with a record number of 34 teams,” said NA3HL Commissioner Blake MacNicol. “Our teams and their leadership worked hard to make the schedule happen and we are looking forward to many of the enhanced and new match-ups in the NA3HL this season. We all share in the common mission of creating an enhanced level of play and competition that is focused on a player’s development and advancement. We also share a common goal for players to advance to college hockey while competing and developing in within USA Hockey Ladder of Development.”
Great Falls is entering their eleventh season of junior hockey (2011-12 – Present) and will have 16 home dates at the Great Falls Ice Plex as they begin their eighth season of competition in the Frontier Division of the North American 3 Hockey League (NA3HL). The Americans will begin the first six weeks of the season on the road where they will face a twin bill against the Yellowstone Quake in Cody, Wyoming (Sept. 10-11) followed by a single game in Week 2 against the Bozeman Ice Dogs at Bozeman’s Haynes Pavilion on September 18th, a pair of games against the Gillette Wild in Gillette, Wyoming on September 24-25, two games in Sheridan, WY to face the defending Frontier Division champions from 2020-21, the Sheridan (WY) Hawks on October 1-2. Great Falls will also play two games (October 8-9) in Helena, Montana against the Bighorns and go back to Sheridan, WY for two against the Hawks. Great Falls begins their home season at the Great Falls Ice Plex where they will host the Butte Cobras on October 22. All home games will begin at 7:30PM (MST); except for Oct. 22nd game vs. Butte will start at 8:05PM and the Oct. 29th contest against Bozeman (10:43PM) and Nov. 14 game against Helena (1:00PM). All home and away games can be seen on the league’s webcast subscription service, HockeyTV.
The Americans will report this season on Wednesday, September 1 under the direction of Head Coach/General Manager, Greg Sears, who enters his fourth season at the helm of the Great Falls junior hockey squad.
“We are excited to get started in September,” said Great Falls Americans Head Coach/General Manager Greg Sears. “I’m excited about the group of guys coming in. It should be another fun year.”
In addition to the three other Montana-based NA3HL squads (Bozeman Ice Dogs, Helena Bighorns, and the Butte Cobras), Wyoming also has three squads competing including the Yellowstone Quake (Cody, WY), Gillette (WY) Wild and the Sheridan (WY) Hawks and one in Rapid City, South Dakota, the Badlands Sabres, who are entering their first year this season.
The NA3HL also announced three events during the 2021-22 season including the annual NA3HL (league-wide) Showcase taking place from December 20-22, 2021, in Blaine, Minnesota that feature all 34 teams. In February 2022, the NA3HL Top Prospects Tournament will be held on February 7-8 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The season concludes with the 2022 NA3HL Fraser Cup Championship Tournament that crowns the NA3HL’s playoff champion (March 24-28) in St. Louis, Missouri.
In December’s Showcase tournament (December 20-22) in Blaine, Minnesota each of the 34 league members in 16 states will play against other division teams featuring three games in three days. The contests will count in the overall standings and feature coaches and scouts from the NCAA, junior college ranks and the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA).
The second major event of the season is the NA3HL Top Prospects Tournament in Cranberry Township (near Pittsburgh), Pennsylvania, which will coincide with the 2022 North American Hockey League’s (NAHL) Top Prospects Tournament on February 7-8, 2022, that will highlight the NA3HL’s best players in an ‘all-star’ setting.
Finally, the NA3HL will finish off their postseason with a national tournament in late March with the 2022 NA3HL Fraser Cup Tournament held on March 24-28, 2022, in St. Louis, Missouri that will crown a national champion. Prior to the national tournament, the Divisional playoffs will decide which team represents each division at the five-day round-robin tournament.
Click here to view the NA3HL’s press release for more information and the NA3HL Divisional breakdown for each of the league’s five divisions below.
The 2021-22 Americans season schedule is below.
| Day/Date | Game | Time | Location |
| SEPTEMBER | |||
| Fri. Sept. 10 | @ Yellowstone Quake | 7:30PM | Riley Arena, Cody, WY |
| Sat. Sept. 11 | @ Yellowstone Quake | 7:30PM | Riley Arena, Cody, WY |
| Sat. Sept. 18 | @ Bozeman Ice Dogs | 7:30PM | Haynes Pavilion, Bozeman, MT |
| Fri. Sept. 24 | @ Gillette Wild | 7:05PM | Spirit Hall Ice Arena, Gillette, WY |
| Sat. Sept. 25 | @ Gillette Wild | 7:05PM | Spirit Hall Ice Arena, Gillette, WY |
| OCTOBER | |||
| Fri. Oct. 1 | @ Sheridan Hawks | 7:30PM | Whitney Rink in the M&M’s Center, Sheridan, WY |
| Sat. Oct. 2 | @ Sheridan Hawks | 7:30PM | Whitney Rink in the M&M’s Center, Sheridan, WY |
| Fri. Oct. 8 | @ Helena Bighorns | 7:05PM | Helena Ice Arena, Helena, MT |
| Sat. Oct. 9 | @ Helena Bighorns | 7:05PM | Helena Ice Arena, Helena, MT |
| Fri. Oct. 15 | @ Sheridan Hawks | 7:30PM | Whitney Rink in the M&M’s Center, Sheridan, WY |
| Sat. Oct. 16 | @ Sheridan Hawks | 7:30PM | Whitney Rink in the M&M’s Center, Sheridan, WY |
| Fri. Oct. 22 | vs. Butte Cobras | 8:05PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Thurs. Oct. 28 | vs. Butte Cobras | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Fri. Oct. 29 | vs. Bozeman Ice Dogs | 10:43PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Oct. 30 | @ Butte Cobras | 7:00PM | Butte Community Ice Center, Butte, MT |
| NOVEMBER | |||
| Fri. Nov. 5 | vs. Sheridan Hawks | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Nov. 6 | vs. Sheridan Hawks | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sun. Nov. 14 | vs. Helena Bighorns | 1:00PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Fri. Nov. 19 | @ Gillette Wild | 7:05PM | Spirit Hall Ice Arena, Gillette, WY |
| Sat. Nov. 20 | @ Gillette Wild | 7:05PM | Spirit Hall Ice Arena, Gillette, WY |
| Fri. Nov. 26 | vs. Badlands Sabres | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Nov. 27 | vs. Badlands Sabres | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| DECEMBER | |||
| Wed. Dec. 1 | @ Butte Cobras | 7:00PM | Butte Community Ice Center, Butte, MT |
| Fri. Dec. 3 | @ Badlands Sabres | 7:05PM | Roosevelt Park Ice Arena, Rapid City, SD |
| Sat. Dec. 4 | @ Badlands Sabres | 7:05PM | Roosevelt Park Ice Arena, Rapid City, SD |
| Fri. Dec. 10 | @ Gillette Wild | 7:05PM | Spirit Hall Ice Arena, Gillette, WY |
| Sat. Dec. 11 | @ Gillette Wild | 7:05PM | Spirit Hall Ice Arena, Gillette, WY |
| Mon. Dec. 20 | NA3HL Showcase | NSC Super Rink, Blaine, MN | |
| @ Willmar (MN) WarHawks | 12:00PM (MST) | ||
| Tues. Dec. 21 | NA3HL Showcase | NSC Super Rink, Blaine, MN | |
| @ Mid Cities (TX) Jr. Stars | 8:45AM (MST) | ||
| Wed. Dec. 22 | NA3HL Showcase | NSC Super Rink, Blaine, MN | |
| vs. New Jersey Titans | 10:45AM (MST) | ||
| Fri. Dec. 31 | vs. Butte Cobras | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| JANUARY | |||
| Sat. Jan. 1 | vs. Butte Cobras | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Jan. 15 | vs. Bozeman Ice Dogs | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sun. Jan. 16 | @ Bozeman Ice Dogs | 7:00PM | Haynes Pavilion, Bozeman, MT |
| Fri. Jan. 21 | vs. Badlands Sabres | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Jan. 22 | vs. Badlands Sabres | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sun. Jan. 23 | @ Bozeman Ice Dogs | 4:00PM | Haynes Pavilion, Bozeman, MT |
| Fri. Jan. 28 | vs. Helena Bighorns | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Jan. 29 | @ Helena Bighorns | 7:05PM | Helena Ice Arena, Helena, MT |
| FEBRUARY | |||
| Mon. Feb. 7 | NA3HL Top Prospects Tournament | UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, Pittsburgh, PA | |
| Red vs. Blue | 9:00AM (MST) | Red Roster l Blue Roster | |
| White vs. Black | 9:45AM (MST) | White Roster l Black Roster | |
| Tues. Feb. 8 | NA3HL Top Prospects Tournament | UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex, Pittsburgh, PA | |
| Blue vs. White | 7:00AM (MST) | Blue Roster l White Roster | |
| Black vs. Red | 9:30AM (MST) | Black Roster l Red Roster | |
| Fri. Feb. 11 | @ Yellowstone Quake | 7:30PM | Riley Arena, Cody, WY |
| Sat. Feb. 12 | @ Yellowstone Quake | 7:30PM | Riley Arena, Cody, WY |
| Sun. Feb. 13 | @ Bozeman Ice Dogs | 5:15PM | Haynes Pavilion, Bozeman, MT |
| Fri. Feb. 18 | @ Helena Bighorns | 7:05PM | Helena Ice Arena, Helena, MT |
| Sat. Feb. 19 | @ Helena Bighorns | 7:05PM | Helena Ice Arena, Helena, MT |
| Fri. Feb. 25 | vs. Yellowstone Quake | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sat. Feb. 26 | vs. Yellowstone Quake | 7:30PM | Great Falls Ice Plex |
| Sun. Feb. 27 | @ Helena Bighorns | 4:00PM | Helena Ice Arena, Helena, MT |
| End of Regular Season | |||
Click here to view the entire 2020-21 team-by-team schedule.
