Ryan Ladika/MDN Minotauros Isaac Keller (right) fights for the puck along the boards during Minot's April 22 contest against Aberdeen.

The fourth-seeded Minot Minotauros began their march through the 2021 Robertson Cup Playoffs Friday night, but the squad dropped the initial contest of their first-round matchup against the No. 1 Aberdeen Wings 3-1 at the Odde Ice Center.

The Minotauros entered the series as underdogs against the first place-finishing Wings, but did experience a taste of success against their higher-seeded division rival during the regular season. Of the five losses Aberdeen suffered during the regular season, two came at the hands of Minot. The postseason series began on the heels of a two-game regular season set between the two teams that Minot did not fare as well in, tallying two goals to the Wings’ 14.

Minot’s Keenan Rancier and Aberdeen’s Jake Sibell, the two goaltenders who skated the most minutes in the NAHL this season, both took their respective places between the pipes. Sibell brought his miniscule 1.19 goals-against average from the regular season into his Friday start, and Rancier sported his final 3.32 mark to accompany a .911 save percentage.

The Minotauros played a fairly balanced first period that saw the team outshot by only six, surely a welcome sight for head coach Shane Wagner following a pair of lopsided defeats at the hands of the Wings to put a bow on the regular season.

Thomas Manty scored the game’s first goal for Aberdeen after Rancier was unable to prevent a rebound off an initial Wings shot, but the Minotauros clamped down defensively for the majority of the first period.

With the help of some crucial saves by its netminder, it appeared as though Minot would escape the first period trailing only by one, but the Wings doubled their lead when Natan Vertes found the back of the Minotauros’ net with only 37 seconds left on the clock. Dating back to the final series of the regular season, the goal was Vertes’ sixth in three games against Minot.

After a slow start to the middle frame that saw Minot outshot 3-0, the Minotauros regained the momentum and threw four consecutive shots at Sibell, culminating in the squad’s first goal of the game to halve Aberdeen’s lead.

A three-on-two chance materialized near the four and a half minute mark of the second period, with Kyle Kukkonen skating down the middle of the offensive zone toward the crease. With a quick flick of the wrists, the forward ripped the puck past Sibell to get the Minotauros on the scoreboard four minutes and 24 seconds into the frame. Minot’s captain Jack Westlund was also credited with an assist on the play.

With the aid of 15 more Rancier saves, the Minotauros entered the final 20 minutes of play trailing 2-1 after withstanding another late Aberdeen surge in Minot’s zone and entered the third period on the man advantage after Vertes was called for a hooking infraction with 44 seconds remaining in the second.

Minot was unable to build upon its strong second period, and Manty recorded his second tally of the game right off a faceoff 10 minutes and 43 seconds into the final period. Minot played its closest game against Aberdeen since its 3-0 shutout victory over the Wings April 6, but the visitors’ offense ran out of gas toward the end of the third period, eventually being outshot 46-27.

Minot will have its chance to even the series Saturday night, as Game 2 of the series is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. from the Odde Ice Center.