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	Green, Red, Wheat, and Harvest Gold
Owner	Bob Neagle, Jr.
General Manager	Doug Risebrough
Head Coach	Jacques Lemaire
Captain	Brian Rolston (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 Hall of Famers 3.4 Retired numbers 3.5 First-round draft picks 3.6 Franchise scoring leaders 4 NHL awards and trophies 5 Franchise individual records 6 Trades Involving The Minnesota Wild 7 References 8 See also 9 External links

[edit] Franchise history

2000-01 — The Minnesota Wild pick 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 6-0 shutout in Dallas' first regular season game in Minnesota since 1993.^[1]

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 and to date only 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 down from a 3-1 series deficit and winning both Game 6 and 7 in overtime. Andrew Brunette scored the series clincher. 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 the 03-04 season started the Wild were short-handed with 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. It was especially bad with Gaborik, Minnesota's career all-time leading scorer, holding out. 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.

2005-06 — Finished dead last again in Northwest Division, eight points behind the next team, Vancouver; but along the way Gaborik sets new franchise record for goals (37) and Brian Rolston sets new highest point total by a "Wildman" (79).

[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

Records as of November 14, 2006. ^[2]

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	17	11	6	—	0	22	50	39	210	in progress	in progress
Totals	416	167	168	55	26	415	1001	1035	5792	—	—

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 November 1, 2006. [1]

Goaltenders
#		Player	Catches	Acquired	Place of Birth
32		Niklas Bäckström	L	2006	Helsinki, Finland
35		Manny Fernandez	L	2000	Etobicoke, Ontario

Defensemen
#		Player	Shoots	Acquired	Place of Birth
3		Keith Carney	L	2006	Providence, Rhode Island
5		Kim Johnsson - A	L	2006	Malmö, Sweden
8		Brent Burns	R	2003	Ajax, Ontario
26		Kurtis Foster	L	2005	Carp, Ontario
33		Petteri Nummelin (Injured)	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		Marián Gáborík (Injured)	RW	L	2000	Trencin, Czechoslovakia
11		Pascal Dupuis (Injured)	LW	L	2000	Laval, Quebec
12		Brian Rolston - C	C	L	2004	Flint, Michigan
18		Mattias Weinhandl	RW	R	2006	Ljungby, Sweden
19		Stephane Veilleux	LW	L	2001	Beauceville, Quebec
21		Mark Parrish	RW	R	2006	Bloomington, Minnesota
23		Jason Morgan	C	L	2006	St. John's, Newfoundland
24		Derek Boogaard	LW	L	2001	Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
28		Todd White	RW	L	2005	Kanata, Ontario
37		Wes Walz - A	C	R	2000	Calgary, Alberta
38		Pavol Demitra	LW	L	2006	Dubnica, Czechoslovakia
92		Branko Radivojevič	RW	R	2006	Piestany, Czechoslovakia
96		Pierre-Marc Bouchard	C	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 amongst several of its players each season, with some players serving multiple times.

[edit] Hall of Famers

• None

[edit] Retired numbers

• 1 Minnesota Fans, 1967-93 (North Stars) and 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*	LW	367	138	143	281	.77
Andrew Brunette	LW	245	54	110	164	.67
Wes Walz*	C	377	74	85	159	.42
Pascal Dupuis*	LW	296	58	71	129	.44
Jim Dowd	C	283	32	89	121	.43
Antti Laaksonen	RW	323	55	63	118	.37
Pierre-Marc Bouchard*	RW	208	31	85	116	.56
Sergei Zholtok	LW	210	42	68	110	.52
Filip Kuba	D	292	27	80	107	.37
Brian Rolston*	C	99	45	51	96	.97

[edit] NHL awards and trophies

Jack Adams Award

• Jacques Lemaire: 2002-03

Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award

• Dwayne Roloson: 2003-04

[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, 5 (2001-02 & 2003-04)

[edit] Trades Involving The Minnesota Wild

06-12-00 Acquired Manny Fernandez and Brad Lukowich from the Dallas Stars in exchange for 2000 3rd round pick (Joel Lundqvist) and 2002 4th round pick.

06-12-00 Acquired Andy Sutton, 2001 3rd round pick (Stephane Veilleux), and 2000 7th round pick (Peter Bartos) from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for 2000 7th round pick and future considerations (Not selecting Evgeni Nabokov in the expansion draft).

06-23-00 Acquired Rickard Wallin from the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Joey Juneau.

06-23-00 Acquired Brad Bombardir from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Chris Terreri and 2000 9th round pick (Traded to Tampa Bay who selects Thomas Ziegler).

06-23-00 Acquired Dan Cavanaugh and 8th round pick in either 2000 or 2001 from the Calgary Flames in exchange for Mike Vernon.

06-25-00 Acquired Aaron Gavey and Pavel Patera and 8th round pick (Eric Johansson) in 2000 from the Dallas Stars in exchange for Brad Lukowich, 3rd (Yared Hagos) and a 9th round pick in 2001.

01-13-01 Acquired Roman Simicek from the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for Steve McKenna.

03-01-01 Acquired Askhat Rakmatullin and 2001 3rd round pick (later traded to New York Rangers; Rangers select Garth Murray) from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Scott Pellerin.

03-04-01 Acquired Willie Mitchell and future considerations from the New Jersey Devils in exchange for Sean O' Donnell.

03-13-01 Acquired a 3rd round pick in 2001 from the Ottawa Senators for Curtis Leschyshyn.

06-23-01 Acquired a 3rd round pick in 2001 (Chrid Heid) from the New York Rangers (Garth Murray) in exchange for a 3rd round pick in 2001 and 5th round pick in 2001 (Shawn Collymore).

06-29-01 Acquired Sergei Zholtok from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for future considerations.

11-01-01 Acquired a 7th round pick in 2002 from the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in exchange for Sergei Krivokrasov.

01-04-02 Acquired David Cullen from the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Sebastien Bordeleau.

01-22-02 Acquired Hnat Domenichelli from the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for Andy Sutton.

03-19-02 Acquired Greg Crozier from the Boston Bruins in exchange for Daryl Laplante.

05-24-02 Acquired Chris Dyment from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for a 2002 5th round pick.

06-22-02 Acquired 2002 9th round pick from the Calgary Flames in exchange for Jamie McLennan.

06-22-02 Acquired Cliff Ronning from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for a 4th round pick 2002.

10-31-02 Acquired 2003 7th round pick (Adam Courchaine) from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Sylvain Blouin.

02-20-03 Acquired Jay Henderson from the New York Rangers in exchange for Cory Larose.

03-11-03 Acquired Johan Holmquist from the New York Rangers in exchange for Lawrence Nycholat.

06-23-03 Acquired Chris Bala from the Ottawa Senators in part of a three team trade that sends Curtis Murphy to Nashville.

12-09-03 Acquired Michael Schutte from the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Chris Dyment.

12-17-03 Acquired Eric Chouinard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for a 5th round pick in 2004 (Chris Zarb).

02-25-04 Acquired a 4th round pick in 2005 draft (pick traded to Ottawa) from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Darby Hendrickson.

03-03-04 Acquired a 5th round pick in 2004 draft (Jean-Claude Sawyer) from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Jason Marshall.

03-04-04 Acquired a 4th round pick in 2004 draft (Patrick Bordeleau) from the Montreal Canadiens in exchange for Jim Dowd.

03-05-04 Acquired a 3rd (Peter Olvecky) and 4th round (Julien Sprunger) picks in the 2004 draft from the Nashville Predators in exchange for Sergei Zholtok and Brad Bombardir.

03-08-04 Acquired a 4h round pick in the 2005 draft (Kyle Bailey) from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for Brad Brown.

03-09-04 Acquired Jordan Krestanovich from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Chris Bala.

07-30-05 Acquired Todd White from the Ottawa Senators in exchange for a 2005 4th round pick (Cody Bass).

08-26-05 Acquired Erik Westrum and Dustin Wood from the Phoenix Coyotes in exchange for Zbynek Michalek.

03-08-06 Acquired 1st round pick (later traded to Los Angeles) from the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Dwayne Roloson.

03-09-06 Acquired Martin Skoula and Shawne Belle from the Dallas Stars in exchange for Willie Mitchell.

06-14-06 Acquired Petteri Nummelin from the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for a conditional 3rd round pick.

06-24-06 Acquired Pavol Demitra from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Patrick O' Sullivan and 2006 1st round pick (Trevor Lewis).

[edit] References

[edit] See also

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

[edit] External links

• Official website of the Minnesota Wild

Minnesota Wild Head Coaches
Lemaire