Minnesota Wild

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Minnesota Wild
Conference	Western
Division	Northwest
Founded	2000
History	Minnesota Wild 2000-present
Arena	Xcel Energy Center
City	St. Paul, Minnesota
Local Media Affiliates	FSN North KSTC-TV WCCO (830 AM)
Team Colors	Forest Green, Iron Range Red, Minnesota Wheat, and Harvest Gold
Owner	Bob Naegele
General Manager	Doug Risebrough
Head Coach	Jacques Lemaire
Captain	Mark Parrish (Rotating)
Minor League Affiliates	Houston Aeros (AHL) Texas Wildcatters (ECHL)
Stanley Cups	none
Conference Championships	none
Division Championships	none

The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. They play in the National Hockey League (NHL). The team's inaugural season was in 2000.

Contents 1 Franchise history 2 Season-by-season record 3 Notable players 3.1 Current roster 3.2 Team captains 3.3 Retired numbers 3.4 First-round draft picks 3.5 Franchise scoring leaders 4 NHL awards and trophies 5 Franchise individual records 6 Ownership 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

[edit] Franchise history

1997: The National Hockey League announced that Minnesota has been awarded an expansion franchise to begin play in the 2000-2001 season. The six finalists named for new NHL franchise were: Minnesota Blue Ox, Minnesota Freeze, Minnesota Northern Lights, Minnesota Voyageurs, Minnesota White Bears and Minnesota Wild. Jac Sperling was named Chief Executive Officer of the Minnesota Wild. and Martha Larson was named Chief Financial Officer, the first female in that position in NHL history.

1998: The new NHL team is officially named the Minnesota Wild. The unveiling occurred in front at Aldrich Arena. The Minnesota Wild announce its first major sponsorship agreement with the Minnesota Wild Mastercard card from First USA. It was the earliest that First USA has ever signed an agreement in advance of a team beginning play (31 months). The State of Minnesota agreed in legislation to fund $65 million of the $130 million project costs for Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota. the Saint Paul Civic Center deconstruction began soon thereafter and the Xcel Energy Center design was announced. a Groundbreaking Ceremony for the Xcel Energy Center was hosted in Saint Paul, Minnesota.

1999: The Minnesota Wild announce a 26-year partnership agreement with the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission (MASC). The Minnesota Wild-MASC partnership is the first partnership of its kind between a private professional sports team and a public amateur sports organization. Doug Risebrough was named executive vice president/general manager of Minnesota Wild. and The Xcel Energy Center is Finished and ready for use.

2000-01 — The Minnesota Wild First Season Officially starts, The Wild name Jacques Lemaire the first-ever head coach and the team picks Marian Gaborik third overall in Round 1 of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft. The team wasn't very successful on the ice, but showed promise for future seasons. The most notable game of the year, however, was the first visit of the Dallas Stars, formerly the Minnesota North Stars. The Wild rode an emotional record crowd of over 18,000 to a 6-zip shutout in Dallas' first regular season game in Minnesota since 1993.

2001-02 — The Wild would get off to a strong start by getting at least 1 point in their first 7 games. However the Wild would finish in last place again with a record of 26-35-12-9. Along the way there were signs the Wild were improving as second-year speedster Gaborik had a solid season with 30 goals, no sophomore slump, and Andrew Brunette led the team in scoring with 69 points.

2002-03 — Gaborik spends much of the season vying for the league scoring crown, and the Wild, in their first ever playoff appearance, make it all the way to the Western Conference Finals before being swept 4-0 by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. Previously, the Wild had beaten the favored and third-seeded Colorado Avalanche in the first round in seven games, coming back from a 3-1 series deficit and winning both Game 6 and 7 in overtime. Andrew Brunette scored the series clinching goal. In the Western Conference Semi-Finals, the Wild beat the fourth-seeded Vancouver Canucks, again in seven games, and again after being down 3-1 in the series. In the process, the Wild became the first team in playoff history to capture a seven-game series twice after facing elimination during Game 5.

2003-04 — When this season started the Wild were short-handed with both Pascal Dupuis and Gaborik holding out. After struggling in the first month the Wild finally got their two young star left-wingers signed but both struggled to get back into game shape as the Wild struggled through much of November. In a deep hole the Wild could not climb back into the playoffs despite finishing the season strong with wins in 5 of their last 6 games as they finished last in the competitive Northwest Division with a record of 30-29-20-3. Along the way the Wild began to gear up for the future trading away several of their older players that were a part of the franchise from the beginning including Brad Bombardir and Jim Dowd.

2004-05 — Season cancelled due to lockout. Former Wild player Sergei Zholtok dies from a heart condition during a game played in Europe. Zholtok died in the arms of Minnesotan and former Wild player Darby Hendrickson.

2005-06 — Finished in last place in Northwest Division, eight points behind Vancouver; along the way Gaborik set a new franchise record for goals in a season (38) and Brian Rolston set a new highest point total by a Wild player in a season (79). The goaltender controversy between Manny Fernandez and Dwayne Roloson ended when Roloson was traded to Edmonton for a first round pick in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft.

2006-07 — Signed veteran Free Agents, Kim Johnsson, Mark Parrish, and Keith Carney. On the day of the NHL Entry Draft, they traded the 17th overall pick and prospect Patrick O'Sullivan to the Los Angeles Kings for veteran Slovakian Pavol Demitra. Niklas Backstrom has been the Starting goalie for the Wild since starter Manny Fernandez initially sprained his knee on Jan. 20, Fernandez played for the first time since the sprain on Tuesday, March 6th and was removed after allowing three goals in two periods in the Wild's 3-0 loss to San Jose. Josh Harding, was brought up from the Wild's minor-league affiliate, the Houston Aeros, when Fernandez was hurt, and will remain on Minnesota's roster for the rest of the season as the backup goalie. All-Star winger Marian Gaborik returned from a groin injury in January of 2007 and made an immediate impact, bringing a new spark to a lacking offense.

The Wild are currently (as of April 1st, 2007) sitting in 2nd place in the Northwest division and are in 7th place in the Western Conference, they have officially clinched a trip to the playoffs for only the second time in their history and the first time in four years.

[edit] Season-by-season record

Note:

GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses,

Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Season	GP	W	L	T	OTL	Pts	GF	GA	PIM	Finish	Playoffs
2000-01	82	25	39	13	5	68	168	210	1200	5th, Northwest	Did not qualify
2001-02	82	26	35	12	9	73	195	238	1209	5th, Northwest	Did not qualify
2002-03	82	42	29	10	1	95	198	178	1063	3rd, Northwest	Won in Conference Quarterfinals, 4-3 (Avalanche) Won in Conference Semifinals, 4-3 (Canucks) Lost in Conference Finals, 0-4 (Mighty Ducks)
2003-04	82	30	29	20	3	83	188	183	1035	5th, Northwest	Did not qualify
2004-051	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2005-062	82	38	36	—	8	84	231	215	1211	5th, Northwest	Did not qualify
2006-07	82	48	26	—	8	104	235	191	800	2nd, Northwest	Conference Quarterfinals vs. Ducks
Totals	490	208	194	55	34	505	1213	1214	6502	—	—

¹ Season was cancelled due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout.

² As of the 2005-06 NHL season, all games will have a winner; the OTL column includes SOL (Shootout losses).

[edit] Notable players

[edit] Current roster

As of April 1st, 2007. [1]

Goaltenders
#		Player	Catches	Acquired	Place of Birth
29		Josh Harding	R	2002	Regina, Saskatchewan
32		Niklas Backstrom	L	2006	Helsinki, Finland
35		Manny Fernandez (Injured)	L	2000	Etobicoke, Ontario

Defensemen
#		Player	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
3		Keith Carney	L	2006	Providence, Rhode Island
5		Kim Johnsson	L	2006	Malmö, Sweden
8		Brent Burns	R	2003	Ajax, Ontario
26		Kurtis Foster	L	2005	Carp, Ontario
33		Petteri Nummelin	L	2006	Turku, Finland
41		Martin Skoula	L	2006	Litomerice, Czechoslovakia
55		Nick Schultz	L	2000	Strasbourg, Saskatchewan

Forwards
#		Player	Position	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
9		Mikko Koivu	C	L	2001	Turku, Finland
10		Marian Gaborik	RW	L	2000	Trencin, Czechoslovakia
11		Dominic Moore	C	L	2007	Thornhill, Ontario
12		Brian Rolston - A	LW	L	2004	Flint, Michigan
17		Wyatt Smith	C	L	2006	Thief River Falls, Minnesota
18		Adam Hall	RW	R	2007	Kalamazoo, Michigan
19		Stephane Veilleux	RW	L	2001	Beauceville, Quebec
21		Mark Parrish - C	LW	R	2006	Bloomington, Minnesota
24		Derek Boogaard	LW	L	2001	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
28		Todd White	C	L	2005	Kanata, Ontario
37		Wes Walz - A	C	R	2000	Calgary, Alberta
38		Pavol Demitra	LW	L	2006	Dubnica, Czechoslovakia
92		Branko Radivojevic	LW	R	2006	Piestany, Czechoslovakia
96		Pierre-Marc Bouchard	RW	L	2002	Sherbrooke, Quebec

[edit] Team captains

Note: Since joining the NHL in 2000, the Wild have never named a permanent captain. Instead, the team captaincy is rotated on a monthly basis among several of its players each season, with some players serving multiple times.

[edit] Retired numbers

• 1 Minnesota Fans, 2000-present (Wild)
• 99 Wayne Gretzky, number retired league-wide February 6, 2000

[edit] First-round draft picks

• 2000: Marian Gaborik (3rd overall)
• 2001: Mikko Koivu (6th overall)
• 2002: Pierre-Marc Bouchard (8th overall)
• 2003: Brent Burns (20th overall)
• 2004: A.J. Thelen (12th overall)
• 2005: Benoit Pouliot (4th overall)
• 2006: James Sheppard (9th overall)

[edit] Franchise scoring leaders

These are the top-ten point-scorers in franchise history. Figures are updated after each completed NHL regular season.

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games Played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; P/G = Points per game; * = current Wild player

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	P/G
Marian Gaborik*	RW	408	164	167	331	.81
Wes Walz*	C	427	81	97	178	.42
Andrew Brunette	LW	245	54	110	164	.67
Pierre-Marc Bouchard*	RW	273	48	110	158	.58
Brian Rolston*	LW	160	65	78	143	.89
Pascal Dupuis	LW	334	67	74	141	.42
Jim Dowd	C	283	32	89	121	.43
Antti Laaksonen	RW	323	55	63	118	.37
Sergei Zholtok	LW	210	42	68	110	.52
Filip Kuba	D	292	27	80	107	.37

[edit] NHL awards and trophies

Jack Adams Award

• Jacques Lemaire: 2002-03

Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award

• Niklas Bäckström: 2006-07
• Dwayne Roloson: 2003-04

William M. Jennings Trophy

• Niklas Bäckström and Manny Fernandez: 2006-07

[edit] Franchise individual records

• Most Goals in a season: Marian Gaborik, 38 (2005-06)
• Most Assists in a season: Andrew Brunette, 48 (2001-02)
• Most Points in a season: Brian Rolston, 79 (2005-06)
• Most Penalty Minutes in a season: Matt Johnson, 201 (2002-03)
• Most Points in a season, defenseman: Filip Kuba, 30 (2000-01)
• Most Points in a season, rookie: Marian Gaborik, 36 (2000-01)
• Most Wins in a season: Manny Fernandez, 30 (2005-06)
• Most Shutouts in a season: Dwayne Roloson, (2001-02 & 2003-04) & Niklas Bäckström, (2006-07), 5

[edit] Ownership

The Minnesota Wild is owned by Minnesota Sports & Entertainment, which is a limited partnership formed by majority owner Bob Naegele Jr. in 1997. The partnership also owns the Minnesota Swarm in the National Lacrosse League (NLL). Along with the Wild and the Swarm the group operates the Xcel Energy Center, the Saint Paul RiverCentre and Roy Wilkins Auditorium. The group has recently extended its business through a majority stake in Wildside Caterers. The partnership also owns and operates 317 on Rice Park, which was the former historic Minnesota Club.

[edit] See also

• Hockey Hall of Fame
• List of Minnesota Wild players
• Head Coaches of the Minnesota Wild
• Minnesota North Stars
• List of NHL players
• List of NHL seasons

[edit] References

• Stars Can't Go Home Again (AP)
• Minnesota Wild Stats and Records

[edit] External links

• Official NHL Website
• Minnesota Wild Official Website

Minnesota Wild Head Coaches
Lemaire

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