After a season filled with highs and lows, the Aberdeen Wings are heading into the postseason on an upswing.

The Wings won three of their final four games to close out the regular season, secure a spot in the playoffs and finish in third place in the Central Division standings.

“This year we had some ups and downs with our consistency. We had a couple good months there,” said Wings coach Scott Langer. “We went on a pretty good run, but we’ve been semi-healthy I would say most of the year, with some big injuries, but us getting in is a testament to those guys just not giving up, because they battled some adversity, and they fought their way to third place.”

As a result, Aberdeen will face longtime rival Bismarck in the opening round starting Friday night. The Bobcats finished second in the standings behind Minot. While both would be formidable foes, Langer noted that Bismarck is a shorter trip.

“At the end of the day, we really wanted Bismarck, but Bismarck has had our number and one way or another, you’ve got to get through a good team,” Langer said, “and Minot and Bismarck are both really solid hockey teams, so for us to have the shorter road trip as well, I think is a good thing, but we’re going to have to play really, really, really, good hockey to get some wins.”

Langer said the Bobcats feature a variety of guys who can put the puck in the back of the net. The goal is to try to slow them down before they end up in scoring position.

“We have to be a disciplined hockey team and we’ve got to clog things up a little bit. We have to make it hard for them to get 200 feet and get to our net, because when they do that, they’re highly successful,” Langer said. “Their power play, very good, so staying out of the box and really playing on top of the puck, and making sure if they’re going to get it, they’re going to earn it.”

Often times hot goaltending can play a key role in playoff hockey and Aberdeen goalie Adam Dybal will front and center in this series. Dybal has been solid in goal to close out the regular season.

“Your goalie has to be your best penalty kill, your goalie has to save you when you have an extended shift and you’re tired and you’re down and out, and you can’t get off the ice,” Langer said. “That’s playoff hockey. You’ve got to keep it tight and give your guys the ability to put a few in, because normally it’s a tight-checking hockey game that doesn’t have a lot of points put up.”

While the Wings will not have the home-ice advantage in the series, they are not a huge underdog. The squad has a winning record and a rich playoff history.

“You know you can go do the old David and Goliath thing and all the stuff that they do in sports,” Langer said, “but I think at the end of the day, the team with biggest heart and the team with the biggest battle is going to find a way to win hockey games. We know we’re capable, but we are facing a very good hockey team.”

Langer knows as well as anybody that anything can and sometimes does happen in playoff hockey. He recalled his first year in the Hub City when the Wings got into the playoffs on the final night of the regular season and then made the most of their opportunity.

“The first year I was here in Aberdeen we were a fifth-place team, sixth-place team, at that time and we found our way in at the very last game, at the very last second in overtime,” Langer said, “and that team found a way to the Robertson Cup, so it’s possible. Anything is possible in the playoffs.”

Make no mistake, the Bobcats definitely have Aberdeen’s attention after scoring 15 goals in two games the last time they two played just a few weeks ago in Bismarck. The Wings have not forgotten.

“They embarrassed us last time we went up there, that’s just the 100 percent honest truth,” Langer said. “They embarrassed us as a rival and that doesn’t sit well with ownership, franchise, anybody within our organization.”

The Wings now have a chance to do something about it, thanks to a strong finish to the season which has put them in the middle of the playoff chase.

“I’m just excited that the guys found a way to get there,” Langer said. “It’s been a long season, but our guys kept fighting and they found a way to get 31 wins. And 30 wins in our division and in this league is hard to come by.”