Ryan Ladika/MDN Minot forward Dean Schwenninger skates the puck into the offensive zone during the first period Thursday evening.

The Minot Minotauros welcomed the Aberdeen Wings back to the Maysa Arena ice for the first time since last year’s two postseason wins, but Minot could not stop its division rivals in a 5-3 defeat Thursday night.

The two-game series that began Thursday marked the first meeting between the two teams since late May, when the Wings eliminated the Minotauros by the slimmest of margins from the first round of the 2021 Robertson Cup Playoffs.

Minot won both affairs on home ice during the series by way of a 69-save masterpiece by goaltender Keenan Rancier in a double-overtime Game 3 and a third-period hat trick produced by Blaine Warnert in Game 4. The Minotauros would fall 4-3 in overtime at the Odde Ice Center in the decisive Game 5.

Both teams returned to the Maysa once again Thursday, albeit with vastly different rosters. Forward Zack Simon, playing his first season with Minot after appearing in a pair of games for the Lone Star Brahmas during the 2019-20 campaign, notched the first goal of the contest near the midway point of the first period.

A Minot clearing attempt trickled out toward center ice and Simon won the race, gathering the puck just inside the far circle deep in the Minotauros’ offensive zone. His point-blank shot beat Wings netminder Dominik Wasik and gave Minot a 1-0 lead 6:53 into the game, also marking his ninth goal of the season and his seventh in as many games.

Zach Sandy produced a spotless first frame, turning aside all 10 shots he faced to lead the Minotauros into the first intermission ahead by a goal.

The Wings gained traction in Minot’s defensive zone in the middle frame and came roaring back with four goals. The Minotauros’ special teams were a glaring problem, allowing Aberdeen to find the back of the net on both its opportunities on the man advantage.

The Wings scored their final two goals of the period in the last two minutes of the frame, the fourth coming with just 9.2 seconds on the clock.

The lone bright spot in an otherwise ugly period for Minot came in the form of Dean Schwenninger’s fifth goal of the year seven minutes in. The forward did it all himself, bringing the puck 200 feet from behind his own net to the Wings’ zone and beating Wasik with a quick wrist shot. It was all the Minotauros could muster offensively and the team entered the final period trailing 4-2 and outshot 27-21.

The two teams played an uneventful third frame until Aberdeen added an empty-net goal with 1:20 remaining on the clock, and Braydon Beahm answered back with the first goal of his Minotauros career. Minot will have a day to regroup before going for the split of the series Saturday afternoon. Puck drop is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.