MUSKEGON – The Muskegon Lumberjacks finally found a way to get past Chicago in the Clark Cup playoffs, but not the way they imagined.

The Jacks have been eliminated from the playoffs by the Steel for three straight seasons, including 2019 and 2021 in the Eastern Conference finals.

Chicago was great again this season, winning the conference title in the regular season, and the Jacks had every expectation of running into the Steel again in the playoffs.

But the Madison Capitols put an end to those thoughts by stunning Chicago two games to one in the Eastern Conference semifinals. That series ended on Tuesday night when the Capitols rallied from a 2-0 deficit and beat the Steel 4-2 in Chicago.

Now the Lumberjacks and Capitols will square off in a three-of-five series, with the winner advancing to the Clark Cup finals.

Games 1 and 2 will be at Muskegon’s Mercy Health Arena on Friday and Saturday night. Game 3 will be in Madison on Monday.

Muskegon’s Ben Strinden (12) battles Madison players for the puck in a game earlier this season. Photo/Tonya Pardon

Game 4, if necessary, would be in Madison on Tuesday, and Game 5, if necessary, would be back in Muskegon next Thursday.

“We’re totally prepared, and we know this is a very quality opponent that’s going to give us a run for our money,” said Lumberjacks Coach Mike Hamilton.

Some fans may look at the regular season standings and say the Jacks should be in good shape in the series. After all, Muskegon finished in third place in the conference while Madison was fifth.

But there are some factors to keep in mind.

The Capitols have been a challenge for the Lumberjacks all season. The teams are 4-4 against each other this year, and Madison is obviously playing very well after upsetting two higher seeds, Youngstown and Chicago, in the first two rounds of the playoffs.

We can expect a hard-fought conference title series between two good teams that are both playing great right now, according to Hamilton.

One point of concern for Hamilton is Madison goalie Simon Latkoczy, a high-quality netminder who led Chicago to the Clark Cup last season before joining Madison this year.

Latkoczy ranks third in the league among goalies in the playoffs with a 4-1 record and a very nice 2.21 goals against average. Muskegon goalie Chase Clark is fourth with a 4-0 record and a 2.25 GAA.

Muskegon’s Jake Richard parks in front of Madison’s standout goalie, Simon Latkoczy, in a game earlier this season. Photo taken by Jeremy Clark.

On paper, the Lumberjacks may have an advantage offensively, with four players who finished in the top 20 in the league in regular season point production, while Madison had none. In the playoffs so far, the Jacks have eight players in the top 20 in scoring while Madison has three.

In the regular season Muskegon had five players score more than 20 goals while Madison had three. Overall the Jacks outscored Madison 286-233.

On the other hand, Muskegon gave up 252 goals in the regular season, compared to Madiion’s 233.

The most entertaining game between the two teams came on Jan. 7 in Madison, when Muskegon won 10-6, and 16 different players scored in the game.

“We weren’t too surprised,” Hamilton said about Madison upsetting Chicago. “They have the best goalie in the league, and we’ve got to solve that piece of the puzzle. They have two of the top defensemen in the league, and they have speed up front. I would say they are the fastest team in the league. So there are lots of obstacles here.”

Hamilton said Madison finished fifth in the conference because Latkoczy left the team in midseason to play in an international tournament and the Capitols faded a bit in his absence.

“They had a little lull in the middle of the year,” the coach said. “Their goalie went overseas and played for his country, and when he came back they gave him a few weeks off. I know we played them and thumped them two times when he was gone. They just went through a phase and lost their mojo.”

Muskegon’s Jack Williams and Cameron Korpi celebrate a victory over Madison earlier this year. Photo/Tonya Pardon

That mojo quickly returned in the playoffs. The Capitols swept fourth-seeded Youngstown in the first round of the playoffs, then beat mighty Chicago in three games in the second round.

Madison was shut out in Game 2, and trailed 2-0 in the decisive Game 3 on Tuesday in Chicago before storming back for a 4-2 victory.

The Lumberjacks have been red-hot themselves, and have also shown a lot of mental toughness in the playoffs.

They swept Cedar Rapids in two games  in the first round,. 6-0 and 6-1.

The Jacks’ second-round series against Dubuque was more of a struggle. They led the Fighting Saints 2-0 in Game 1, Dubuque rallied and tied the score, then the Jacks pulled out a 4-3 win.

On Sunday the Jacks jumped out to a 5-1 lead, Dubuque roared back and tied the score 5-5 in the third period, then Muskegon regained its composure again, scoring three late goals to take an 8-5 win.

That win put the Jacks in the Eastern Conference finals for the third straight season, an accomplishment the team is proud of. But now they are more than ready to take the next step into the Clark Cup finals for only the second time in their history, with a chance to win their first championship.

The Lumberjacks were swept in the conference finals by Chicago last season.

“We’re very proud of our guys for getting to this point again,” Hamilton said. “It’s not easy to win in this league. But we’re always pushing for more. We’ve beaten some damned good opponents, and now we have another one in front of us.”