2013 NHL Playoffs: Western Conference Preview and Predictions : April 29, 2013

The 2013 NHL playoffs kick off on Tuesday with three of the Western conference series opening their accounts on that day. The West's top three seeds were wrapped up promptly,...

NHL Final Day Preview: Western Conference : April 27, 2013

The state of play in the Western conference entering Saturday's action really is everything that the final day of the NHL's regular season is and should be about. There are...

NHL Playoffs 2013: All Eyes On Minnesota Tonight : April 26, 2013

Last night resolved all of the competition for 2013 NHL playoff places in the Eastern conference. There may not be a ton of action on the penultimate and some may...

Sunday’s 2013 NHL Playoff Implications : April 21, 2013

The 2013 NHL playoffs are almost upon us. There four places up for grabs in the Eastern conference with five teams in a realistic shout of claiming them. Meanwhile, the...

Minnesota and Columbus Fall In California Keeping Western Conference Race Alive : April 19, 2013

Incumbent seventh and eighth place Minnesota and Columbus both missed opportunities to strengthen their grasp on Western conference playoff places in California on Thursday night. The Wild were annihilated 6-1 by...

NHL Western Conference Playoff Race: Schedule Breakdown : April 13, 2013

We've entered the final couple of weeks of the season and the playoff race is heating up. In the Western conference the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim Ducks are mathematically guaranteed...

NHL Northwest Division 2013 Playoff Watch : April 06, 2013

The Northwest division hasn't been particularly good for the past few seasons. The Vancouver Canucks are the only team from the division that has made the playoffs since 2010. The...

Zach Parise and Ryan Suter Leading Minnesota Wild Success : March 11, 2013

When Minnesota Wild General Manager signed top free agent pair Ryan Suter and Zach Parise to expensive 13-year deals as free agents on July 4; he would have had a...

NHL Head Coaching Hot Seat: Who’s Next? : February 21, 2013

Lindy Ruff holds the second most wins as a head coach of a single franchise with 571 victories across 15 seasons with the Buffalo Sabres. On Wednesday, he was removed...

Minnesota Wild and New York Rangers Make Early Trade : February 04, 2013

The Minnesota Wild and the New York Rangers each entered the shortened 2013 NHL season among the favorites in their respective conferences after making major investments during the offseason. However,...

NHL Northwest Preview and Predictions 2013 : January 18, 2013

The Northwest division should be competitive in 2013 after only owning one playoff team in 2011-12. It's difficult to judge whether Minnesota, Calgary, Colorado and Edmonton have done enough in...

Ice Hockey News Round-up: Zibanejad Staying In NA, Harding Diagnosed With MS : November 30, 2012

The Ottawa Senators have stated that young forward Mika Zibanejad will not be taking part in this winter's World Junior Championships after he scored the Gold Medal winning goal last...

Minnesota Wild Host Emergency Goaltending Competition : November 15, 2012

One of NHL hockey's little quirks occurred during the course of last season. The traditional notion is that you carry two goaltenders, one plays and the other backs-up, if the...

Ryan Suter Is Key To Minnesota’s Success : October 20, 2012

The discussion surrounding the Minnesota Wild this season has been intense. The franchise was already generally excited about a crop of nearly NHL ready young players led by Mikael Granlund...

NHL Northwest Division 2011-12 Review : October 06, 2012

Only the Vancouver Canucks reached the playoffs from the Northwest division in 2011-12. The Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Minnesota Wild and Edmonton Oilers all have a lot of work to...

Shane Doan Still Thinking; Dumba and Wilson Sign Entry Level Deals : July 20, 2012

Shane Doan is still considering his future. The unrestricted free agent has categorically stated that the Phoenix Coyotes are still his first choice team, but he isn't completely comfortable with...

NHL Free Agency Review: Northwest Division : July 15, 2012

The NHL’s free agency period is two weeks old as Hockey Schedule reviews the Northwest division, which has been perhaps the biggest center of attention during the period after big...

‘The Decision’: Minnesota and NHL Style : July 05, 2012

LeBron James made the phrase 'the decision' famous with that quite absurd piece of TV showmanship, which announced the decision of NBA free agents James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh...

Minnesota Wild Sign Granlund; Phillips and Coyle Impress : May 23, 2012

The Minnesota Wild endured one of the most frustrating seasons possible this year. They got out to a fast and impressive start even leading the entire NHL in early December,...

Injuries Hit Minnesota Hard : March 09, 2012

If an incredible slide from first to nearly bottom in the West in the space of just three months wasn’t enough for Minnesota, things have certainly not been improving. The...

Can Colorado or Calgary Make The Playoffs? : March 05, 2012

Can Colorado or Calgary Make The Playoffs? Sebastian Egerton-Read Calgary Flames, Colorado Avalanche, Edmonton Oilers, Minnesota Wild, Vancouver Canucks March 05, 2012 The Vancouver Canucks have once again dominated the Central, while...

Getting Harder For Minnesota and Anaheim To Make The Playoffs : March 02, 2012

When Minnesota’s GM Chuck Fletcher, and Anaheim’s GM Bob Murray sized up their teams at the trade deadline. They must have had a difficult time. On one hand, they were...

Mikko Koivu Injury Hits Struggling Minnesota : January 16, 2012

Few in the Minnesota organisation would argue that the last month and a half hasn’t been pretty devastating for a franchise that had started so brightly. The Wild have just...

Minnesota ‘Not So’ Wild : January 05, 2012

Barely one month ago, the Minnesota Wild were riding atop the Western conference standings, and numerous articles were being written about them as arguably the league’s biggest story through December....

Cracks Appearing After Minnesota’s Fast Start : December 21, 2011

The Minnesota Wild fell to their fourth straight defeat on Monday night, the loss to the Canucks was especially significant as it helped Vancouver close the gap at the top...

minnesota wild History

The National Hockey League (NHL) team the Minnesota Wild are based out of St. Paul, Minnesota. The team plays in the Western Conference's Northwest Division. The Wild franchise was established in 2000 and was the first Minnesota NHL franchise since 1993 when the Minnesota North Stars relocated to Dallas, TX. In their first game they were defeated by the Anaheim Mighty Ducks by a score of 3-1. Five games later the Wild recorded their first win versus the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Wild play their home games at Xcel Energy Center. During the NHL's 2002-2003 season, the Wild made it into the playoffs for the first time and made it all the way into the Western Conference Finals. However the Anaheim Might Ducks swept them. Minnesota's two affiliate minor league teams are the Bakersfield Condors and Houston Aeros. The Wild as of 2011 have a .531 winning percentage average since they entered the NHL. They are also the only 1997 expansion team to have advanced past the playoffs' second round.

The Minnesota Wild have made the playoffs three times. In 2002-2003 the team finished in third place in the Northwest Division and lost in the Conference Finals to Anaheim. In 2006-2007 they placed second in their division and lost to the Ducks in the Conference Quarterfinals. In 2007-08 the Wild won their division but lost to the Avalanche in the Conference Quarterfinals.