New Jerseys will Make Wild Players 9 Percent Faster

The Minnesota Wild is getting newer, more technologically advanced jerseys this season as part of a league-wide uniform reform. All I can say is: Please do not change the design of the logo or color pattern! Yeah, sure, it will be great if Pavol Demitra will be able to move nine percent faster this year thanks to his threads, but the Wild has the coolest looking jerseys in the league right now, and an update in style won’t be needed for at least a couple of years. Anyways, the jerseys will be on sale at the Xcel Energy Center and Mall of America Hockey Lodge stores on Sept. 7. Fans can also get a sneak peek of the jersey design at the Minnesota Wild Minnesota State Fair Booth.

Wild Get National Exposure

The Versus network is undertaking national television showings of Minnesota Wild hockey this season, three games to be exact. Hopefully, the Wild can play their best hockey on October 30 against the Pittsburgh Penguins, January 30 against the Anaheim Mighty Ducks and March 17 against the Colorado Avalanche. If Versus gets some footage of the surrounding sellout crowds at the Xcel Energy Center, displaying all the tickets the Wild sell, maybe the national audience will gain some knowledge: Minnesota is indeed The State of Hockey.

Backstrom Puts a Poor Memory to Use

One of the hugest assets that Minnesota Wild goalie Niklas Backstrom possesses is his poor memory. No really, having a poor memory helps out NHL goalies: they let in a goal and it slips out of their mind like a vague dream. Backstrom specializes in poor memory among the best NHL goalies. It’s a steely attitude that succeeds when defending the net against blue-line snipers, and Backstrom perfectly fits the bill. He doesn’t get overly emotional or whiny if things aren’t going his way, something former Wild goalie Manny Fernandez was apt to do. Now that Fernandez is gone, it’s just one less distraction for Backstrom, not like he could be distracted.

Wild Grooming Another Skull-Basher

Matt Kassian was a second round pick of the Minnesota Wild in the 2005 NHL Draft, and they drafted him for a reason. They needed a backup for Boogey. That’s Derek Boogaard for the uninitiated. Boogaard duked it out with Wild opponents all year in 2006-07 while Kassian was in the juniors waiting his turn. Kassian will most likely start the season for the Houston Aeros again, but the Wild is grooming him nicely for an enforcer spot on the club. The 6-4, 247 pound Kassian is reportedly not as good a skater as Boogaard, but summer power skating sessions have seen improvement. But Kassian’s strong point isn’t his skating, it’s his fighting.

Kassian’s been describe as a new-schooler in fighting technique, but some of the old-school fighters like Georges Laraque have an advantage over the younger guys because of their experience. Fortunately, Kassian has worked out with Laraque in the offseason to prepare him for fights against some of the leagues vets. It probably won’t be long before Wild fans get acquainted with Matt Kassian, he might soon be teaming up with Boogaard to bash some real skull!

Kalus Possesses Serious Potential

Just a refresher: It wasn’t just diddly-squat that came the Minnesota Wild’s way when they traded talented goalie Manny Fernandez last month. The team received excellent looking prospect Petr Kalus from the Boston Bruins, and they hope to use him this season if he proves himself in the Wild prospect camp. Kalus plays a speed game not unlike that of Marian Gaboriks’, and coaches are very high on him. Kalus originally caught Wild management’s attention during the IIHF World Championships in the 2004-05 season. Kalus will compile the penalty minutes – he had 110 in 43 games for the Providence Bruins last year – but he is the type of player the Wild need. So far, people are saying he can do everything, hit, skate and score. Sounds like my kind of winger. Bring the kid up and see what he can do! Get some Minnesota Wild tickets today and see some Gaborik and possibly Kalus action this season.

Being Backup is just Harding’s Ticket

Josh Harding, the Minnesota Wild goaltender of the future, will no longer be limited by that particular title. Harding is ready to step up to be net-minder luminary Niklas Backstrom’s backup, and the Wild signed him to a multi-year deal. With Manny Fernandez shipped off to Boston, Harding will no longer have to compete for backup time. Backstrom will undoubtedly need a rest periodically throughout the season, giving Harding those spot chances to shine that he so specially excelled in last year. In seven games last season, Harding put up a 3-2-1 record with a phenomenal, if not fluky, 1.16 goals against average and a .960 save percentage. He also recorded two shutouts. I’m anxious to see if Harding can keep up these amazing performances in his primary backup role.

Wild Mark their Calendars for Revenge

The Minnesota Wild will get four cracks at defending Stanley Cup Champions the Anaheim Ducks next season according to the 2007-08 NHL schedule released last week. The games will come about midway through the season, and they might be a good measuring stick for the Wild’s postseason potential. Get hockey tickets to see the Ducks vs. Wild when the Ducks come into town on Friday, January 18 and Wednesday, January 30. Don’t be surprised if the second matchup in less than two weeks between the teams turns a little chippy, because after last season’s often deadlocked playoff series, these two teams might do anything to gain the upper hand. The Wild has to travel to Anaheim two times as well to play the Ducks on Sunday, October 14 and Friday, December 14. Buy your Minnesota Wild Tickets now! Let's go Wild!

Wild Sign Sean Hill

The Minnesota Wild signed Duluth, Minnesota native and 37 year old defenseman Sean Hill last week. Hill had one goal and 24 assists in 81 games for the New York Islanders last season and was also the first NHL player suspended for violating the league's drug policy. Hill was suspended hours before the Islanders playoff loss to the Buffalo Sabres due to a positive test for the anabolic steroid boldenone, which is banned by the NHL. Hill received a twenty game suspension and will miss the first nineteen games of the new 2007/08 season. The Wild said Hill acknowledged using a doctor-prescribed testosterone booster approved by the NHL, but told the team he did not knowingly take boldenone and is unsure how it got in his system.

As an eighth-round pick of Montreal in the 1988 draft, Sean Hill has also played for the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, Ottawa Senators, Carolina Hurricanes and the St. Louis Blues. This hard-nosed Minnesota native ranked third in the NHL in hits and sixth in blocked shots last season which is probably why the Wild signed him to the one year deal. Minnesota Wild fans look forward to Hill helping beef up Minnesota Wild defense and Wild fans certainly hope that the Sean Hills next drug test turns out clean because every one knows head coach Jacques Lemaire doesn't mess around with troubled players.

Wild Trade Manny Fernandez

MN Wild Freak had a feeling about Minnesota Wild goalie Manny Fernandez being traded and the feeling was right. The Minnesota Wild traded goaltender Manny Fernandez to the Boston Bruins Sunday. In exchange for Fernandez and his $4.3 million salary, the Wild receive forward prospect Petr Kalus and a mid-round draft pick. The Wild confirmed that the trade was approved by the NHL just after midnight and came so late because of a league technicality. The 2007-08 salary cap didn't officially increase until Sunday, and Fernandez's salary would have pushed the Bruins over the $44 million cap if it had happened on Saturday.

Manny Fernandez was one of the three original Wild players still with the team last season. He had a record of 113-102-28 in 260 games with the Wild, with a 2.47 goals-against average and .914 save percentage. True Minnesota Wild fans will miss their beloved Manny, but goaltender Niklas Backstrom won’t leave us disappointed. Let’s go Wild!

Wild Select Colton Gillies in Draft

The Minnesota Wild traded up in the 2007 NHL Draft last weekend, but didn’t draft who many experts thought they would. The Wild must have really wanted Colton Gillies, because they gave up both their 19th and 42nd overall pick to acquire Gillies at only three picks ahead at 16th overall. Glen Andresen of Wild.nhl.com was sure the Wild was going to select either Alexei Cherpanov or Angelo Esposito. Andresen was high on Esposito because of his incredible on-ice speed. True to his potential, Esposito put up some outrageous numbers in the QMJHL. The 2006-07 season saw him notch 79 points and the 2005-06 season was even more crazy as he dropped 98 points on 39 goals for the Quebec Remparts. Esposito is only 18 years old at the time of the draft, and time will only tell if the Wild missed out on a furious NHL goal scorer. It’s all about the professional team creating a player’s image however, and the Wild has an opportunity to make Colton Gillies a big Minnesota Wild ticket draw in coming years.

Ticket Scalping and Minnesota Wild

It will be very interesting to see what the Minnesota Wild thinks about ticket scalping now that it is legal in Minnesota. I was downtown St. Paul last week and I noticed that Ticket King is opening an office directly across the street form the Xcel Energy Center. I am sure that they did this because Wild Tickets are such a hot commodity. My hunch is that the Minnesota Wild won't have a problem with people buying and selling Wild Tickets because they sell out all of their games and the only way to get tickets is to deal with a ticket broker.

Boogaard Involved in More Fights

After years of being exclusively in the realm of NFL and NBA players, nightclub fight shenanigans have finally entered into the NHL thanks to Wild left winger Derek Boogaard. Boogaard was charged with assaulting a 20-year-old man last August outside of Regina, Saskatchewan’s sole nightclub. OK, I don’t know if Regina has more than one nightclub, but Boogaard was charged with “causing bodily harm,” apparently throwing punches or something. Anyways, the Boogie Man had his charges “stayed” or dropped by the Crown the other day and he won’t have to go to trial. Thanks Boogie for some off-ice notoriety to strike fear into the hearts of opponents. If you want to see some on-ice Boogie fights, get Wild tickets now, because good news: Boogaard was allegedly last seen picking up pointers from Timberwolves player Ricky Davis at the local Déjà vu.