Captains Sig and Sophia shift their fishing strategy as back-to-back injuries plague the Northwestern deck crew. When a Time Bandit crewman suffers a concussion, John must make a perilous harbor entry. Jake loses power in heavy seas on the Cornelia Marie.
As Arctic ice wreaks havoc on the fishing grounds, Rick risks losing a fortune in crab pots. Johnathan tests the Time Bandit's reinforced bow in a desperate attempt to save the gear. A health crisis on the Wizard forces Keith to make a life-or-death call.
For the first time in decades, the fleet hunts for a rare, nearly mythical strain of Red King Crab that's bigger, richer, and worth a fortune -- driving the captains into uncharted waters, crushing ice, and the most violent early-season storms filmed yet.
When Wizard deckhand Lynn Guitard falls overboard in 15 foot seas, Keith and Monte scramble to rescue him before hypothermia sets in; on the Northwestern, Sig lets Sophia prove herself at the Russian line; a greenhorn joins the crew of the Aleutian Lady.
In the winter season premiere, Sig teaches Sophia how to captain the Northwestern at the Russian line. Jake stacks the Cornelia Marie for a risky trip north. When a crab boat sinks near St. George, the Wizard is the only vessel close enough to reach it.
When Sig's crane blows a hydraulic line, Clark ascends the rig in 20-foot seas for a critical repair. The Cornelia Marie crew battles a fire as Jake's engine room fills with smoke. Monte fights a generator outage while Rick dumps pots to avoid capsizing.
When Monte discovers Keith set pots in an illegal zone, he and the Wizard crew must pay the price in blood and treasure. A storm reconnects Jake to the larger-than-life hero of the Cornelia Marie's past. Johnathan gambles on a million-dollar fall season.
When a rogue wave pummels the Wizard and sidelines its crew, Keith reconsiders the risks he's taking. Racing to make an offload, Sig loses a deckhand to a crushed toe. Rick finds crab but needs new tactics to fish a seafloor bristling with old crab pots.