MINNESOTA WILD INAUGURAL SEASON SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED
Wild Hockey Fan
July 6, 2000
<www.wild.com>
MINNESOTA WILD INAUGURAL SEASON SCHEDULE ANNOUNCED
The Minnesota Wild's inaugural season National Hockey League schedule was
released today, including 41 dates at the new 18,600-seat Xcel Energy
Center. The Wild open the 2000-01 season on Friday, October 6 against the
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim at the Arrowhead Pond and debut at the Xcel Energy
Center versus Philadelphia on Wednesday, October 11. To guarantee your seat
at the home opener and all Minnesota Wild home games call 651-222-WILD for
season tickets.
The 2000-01 Wild schedule consists of 82 games - 41 at Xcel Energy
Center and 41 road contests. The home schedule features 26 weekend contests
(12 Friday, 14 Sunday) and 13 day games (one Friday, 12 Sunday). The
busiest home weeknight is Wednesday (12), followed by Monday (2) and
Tuesday (1). Evening games at the Xcel Energy Center will begin at 7 p.m.,
while day games will begin at either 5 p.m. or 1 p.m.
The Wild will play each member of the five-team Northwest Division
(Colorado, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver) five times apiece for a total of
20 games, in addition to playing members of the Western Conference's
Pacific Division (Anaheim, Dallas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, San Jose) and
Central Division (Chicago, Columbus, Detroit, Nashville, St. Louis) at
least four times each for a total of 39 games. There is one exception in
the case of the Columbus Blue Jackets, which the Wild will visit only once
this season.
Minnesota will play each of the 15 Eastern Conference teams at least
one time. The remaining 8 games of the Wild schedule consist of various
regional or special interest rivalries.
Popular out-of-town guests at Xcel Energy Center include: the Chicago
Blackhawks (Oct. 29, Nov. 24); Colorado Avalanche (Jan. 12, Apr. 8);
Columbus Blue Jackets (Jan. 17, Apr. 6); Dallas Stars (Dec. 17, Mar. 19);
Detroit Red Wings (Jan. 5, Mar. 11); the defending Stanley Cup champion New
Jersey Devils (Jan. 21); New York Rangers (Nov. 15); Philadelphia Flyers
(Oct. 11) and St. Louis Blues (Mar. 6, Mar. 14).
The 2001 NHL All-Star weekend will take place February 2-4 at the Pepsi
Center in Denver.
The Wild's longest homestand is four games, occurring twice: October
15-22 against Edmonton, Tampa Bay, San Jose and Florida; and Dec. 29 - Jan.
5 versus Phoenix, Anaheim, Atlanta and Detroit. Minnesota's road schedule
features a season-long six-game trip (Jan. 24 - Feb. 9), which will be
broken up by the NHL All-Star break (Feb. 2-5). The Wild will visit
Anaheim, Los Angeles and Vancouver (Jan. 24-30) before the break, and Tampa
Bay, Florida and Dallas after the break (Feb. 6-9).
The Minnesota Wild inaugural season will come to a close with a Sunday
afternoon game April 8 versus the Colorado Avalanche at 1 p.m. at the Xcel
Energy Center.
Information on Wild individual game tickets and a television schedule
will be released at a later date.
MINNESOTA WILD 2000-2001 SCHEDULE
DAY DATE OPPONENT TIME (CST)
OCTOBER
Fri 6 @ Anaheim 9:30 p.m.
Sat 7 @ Phoenix 9:00 p.m.
WED 11 PHILADELPHIA 7:30 P.M.
Fri 13 @ St. Louis 7:00 p.m.
SUN 15 EDMONTON 5:00 P.M.
WED 18 TAMPA BAY 7:00 P.M.
FRI 20 SAN JOSE 7:00 P.M.
SUN 22 FLORIDA 5:00 P.M.
Tue 24 @ Montreal 6:30 p.m.
Wed 25 @ Toronto 6:30 p.m.
FRI 27 CALGARY 7:00 P.M.
SUN 29 CHICAGO 5:00 P.M.
NOVEMBER
Fri 3 @ Edmonton 8:00 p.m.
Sun 5 @ Calgary 7:00 p.m.
Tue 7 @ Colorado 8:00 p.m.
WED 8 CALGARY 7:00 P.M.
Fri 10 @ Chicago 7:30 p.m.
SUN 12 EDMONTON 5:00 P.M.
WED 15 N.Y. RANGERS 7:00 P.M.
Fri 17 @ Buffalo 6:00 p.m.
Sat 18 @ Boston 6:00 p.m.
WED 22 CALGARY 7:00 P.M.
FRI 24 CHICAGO 1:00 P.M.
SUN 26 VANCOUVER 5:00 P.M.
Tue 28 @ San Jose 9:30 p.m.
Thu 30 @ Phoenix 8:00 p.m.
DECEMBER
Sat 2 @ Los Angeles 9:30 p.m.
Thu 7 @ Chicago 7:30 p.m.
FRI 8 ANAHEIM 7:00 P.M.
SUN 10 NASHVILLE 5:00 P.M.
WED 13 CAROLINA 7:00 P.M.
Thu 14 @ Washington 6:00 p.m.
SUN 17 DALLAS 7:00 P.M.
WED 20 OTTAWA 7:00 P.M.
FRI 22 LOS ANGELES 7:00 P.M.
Wed 27 @ Detroit 6:30 p.m.
FRI 29 PHOENIX 7:00 P.M.
SUN 31 ANAHEIM 5:00 P.M.
JANUARY
WED 3 ATLANTA 7:00 P.M.
FRI 5 DETROIT 7:00 P.M.
Sat 6 @ St. Louis 7:00 p.m.
WED 10 WASHINGTON 7:00 P.M.
FRI 12 COLORADO 7:00 P.M.
Sun 14 @ N.Y. Rangers 6:00 p.m.
Mon 15 @ Columbus 6:00 p.m.
WED 17 COLUMBUS 7:00 P.M.
FRI 19 N.Y. ISLANDERS 7:00 P.M.
SUN 21 NEW JERSEY 1:00 P.M.
Wed 24 @ Anaheim 9:30 p.m.
Sat 27 @ Los Angeles 3:00 p.m.
Tue 30 @ Vancouver 9:00 p.m.
FEBRUARY
Sun 4 All-Star Game TBA
Tue 6 @ Tampa Bay 6:30 p.m.
Wed 7 @ Florida 6:30 p.m.
Fri 9 @ Dallas 7:30 p.m.
SUN 11 PITTSBURGH 1:00 P.M.
Wed 14 @ Pittsburgh 6:30 p.m.
FRI 16 LOS ANGELES 7:00 P.M.
SUN 18 SAN JOSE 1:00 P.M.
Wed 21 @ Dallas 7:30 p.m.
Fri 23 @ Colorado 8:00 p.m.
Sat 24 @ Nashville 6:00 p.m.
MON 26 VANCOUVER 7:00 P.M.
Wed 28 @ Calgary 8:00 p.m.
MARCH
Fri 2 @ Edmonton 8:00 p.m.
Sun 4 @ Vancouver 9:00 p.m.
TUE 6 ST. LOUIS 7:00 P.M.
Thu 8 @ New Jersey 6:30 p.m.
Fri 9 @ N.Y. Islanders6:30 p.m.
SUN 11 DETROIT 5:00 P.M.
WED 14 ST. LOUIS 7:00 P.M.
Thu 15 @ Philadelphia 6:00 p.m.
Sun 18 @ Colorado 2:00 p.m.
MON 19 DALLAS 7:00 P.M.
WED 21 NASHVILLE 7:00 P.M.
Thu 22 @ Detroit 6:30 p.m.
SUN 25 VANCOUVER 1:00 P.M.
WED 28 PHOENIX 7:00 P.M.
Sat 31 @ Nashville 6:00 p.m.
APRIL
Mon 2 @ San Jose 9:30 p.m.
Wed 4 @ Edmonton 8:00 p.m.
FRI 6 COLUMBUS 7:00 P.M.
SUN 8 COLORADO 1:00 P.M.
DATES AND TIMES SUBJECT TO CHANGE
***************************************************************************
For a complete roster of players whose rights are held by the Minnesota
Wild as of July 6th go to <http://www.wild.com/team/team.asp>
***************************************************************************
MINNESOTA WILD SIGNS FREE AGENT FORWARD BRIAN BONIN - NATIVE MINNESOTAN
AND
FORMER HOBEY BAKER WINNER RETURNS TO MINNESOTA
Minnesota Wild Executive Vice President Doug Risebrough announced today
that the Wild has signed free agent center Brian Bonin. As per club
policy, terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
Bonin, 26 (11/28/73), played in 67 games last season with the Syracuse
Crunch of the American Hockey League (AHL). The center finished third on
the team in goals scored (19) and sixth in total points (19-28=47). In
1998-99, Bonin split time between Adirondack (AHL), Kansas City (IHL) and
appeared in five regular season games and three playoff games with the
Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL). The 1997-98 campaign was his most productive
season as a professional, leading the Crunch in scoring with 69 points
(31-38=69) in 67 games.
The Saint Paul, Minnesota-native was originally drafted by the Penguins in
the 9th round (211th overall) of the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. The 5-foot-10,
186-pound forward played collegiate hockey for the University of Minnesota
from 1992-1996. During his senior campaign with the Gophers, Bonin led the
nation in regular season scoring as he registered 81 points (34-47=81) in
42 games. He captured the 1996 Hobey Baker Memorial Award, presented
annually to the nation's most outstanding college hockey player.
The Wild currently have the rights to 51 players. Bonin joins Steve
Aronson, Darby Hendrickson and Jeff Neilsen as the fourth native-Minnesotan
whose rights are held by the Wild. He is the team's second Hobey Baker
Memorial Award winner, joining Scott Pellerin who won the award with the
University of Maine in 1992.
Bonin will report to the Minnesota Wild's inaugural training camp in early
September. The Wild begin play at the Xcel Energy Center as part of the
Northwest Division of the NHL's Western Conference this October. For more
information on the Minnesota Wild please call 651-222-WILD (9453).
***************************************************************************
MINNESOTA WILD ANNOUNCES XCEL ENERGY CENTER ENHANCEMENTS
SAINT PAUL/MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The National Hockey League's (NHL)
Minnesota Wild today announced that the club will make a substantial
investment in the Xcel Energy Center for a variety of enhancements that
will significantly improve the fan experience for hockey and other
entertainment events. As dictated by the Wild's lease with the City, the
Wild's investment is privately funded and will range from $30 - $40
million, depending on the final design. The public investment in the Xcel
Energy Center will remain at $130 million.
The following are examples of the enhancements that the Minnesota Wild
will make to the Xcel Energy Center:
* Electronic display system (360 degree video boards and scoreboard)
* Entertainment platforms in the lobby and four corners of the Arena
* Upgraded acoustical equipment for concerts
* Enhanced in-arena production studio
* State of hockey celebration displays featuring jerseys from each high
school hockey team in the state (boys and girls), and displays from the
United States Hockey Hall of Fame
* Upgraded finishes throughout the building
* Seamless dasherboard glass
* Upgraded food and beverage service facilities
* Added square footage for Club and upper level lounges with great views of
downtown Saint Paul
* An NHL Alumni Lounge
In addition, the Wild, in cooperation with the City of Saint Paul and the
RiverCentre Authority, modified the Arena design to incorporate certain
features that benefit the RiverCentre complex as a whole:
* Accommodation of a future skyway connection
* Additional service level storage space
* Redundant water supply
The Minnesota Wild are committed to the long-term success of the Arena and
the renaissance of downtown Saint Paul. These enhancements will atrengthen
the Xcel Energy Center's competitive position as a premier sports and
entertainment destination.
The 18,600-seat Xcel Energy Center is scheduled to open this September.
The state-of-the-art sports and entertainment facility is home to the NHL's
Minnesota Wild and will host over 140 spectacular entertainment events
annually. Xcel Energy Center features include: great hockey sightlines; a
transparent, glass exterior welcoming fans to the Arena; open concourses
with a view of the ice from each concourse; and Arena lighting that will
accentuate the Saint Paul skyline. The Saint Paul Arena Company, an
affiliate of the Wild, will manage the Xcel Energy Center and the rest of
the RiverCentre complex.
For more information on the Xcel Energy Center and the Minnesota Wild
please call (651) 222-WILD (9453).
`~'~`~'~`~'~`~'~`~'~`~'~`~'~`~'~`
HockeyGuy
http://www.hockeyguy.ircx.com
hock...@mlsports.com
From Power Play to Penalty box,
Blue line to Blue line, Hockey!
The Greatest sport on EARTH!
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