Backstrom, Backstrom, Backstrom

That about sums it up for how the Wild won last night's game against the offensive-laden San Jose Sharks.  Backstrom was a monster in net last night and was the difference maker in the game to even allow the Wild to have a chance for the 1-0 win over the Sharks.

The Wild seemed to have spent the entire night in its defensive end, playing prevent defense for the most part, sans the 9 powerplay opportunities that the Sharks gave them.  But apart from the lone tally of the night from Andrew Brunette on a 5-on-3 powerplay, the Wild weren't able to generate any prime scoring opportunities  on the powerplay.

The defensive play last night was huge against the Sharks. Mikko Koivu, Eric Nystrom, and John Madden were great in their own end, as well as many of the other forwards.  And the defensive pairing of Burns-Schultz was just awesome against the Sharks top line.

Notes:

• First shutout for Backstrom since April 3, 2009, a 4-0 win against the Calgary Flames.
• The Wild defeated the Sharks in regulation for the first time in 16 meetings.
• Koivu's assist on Brunette's powerplay goal gives in a 7-game point streak.
• I've honestly soured on my opinion of Marty Havlat since that article about his "misuse" came out :[ ...who knows, maybe if he starts scoring in droves my opinion on him will change.

UP NEXT: Friday vs. Calgary Flames, 7:00pm CT

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Wild Limit Reigning President Trophy Winner, Win 2-1

The Wild by far played one of its better games against the Washington Capitals last night, holding them scoreless until the last 1:36 of the game when Alexander Ovechkin scored spoiling Niklas Backstrom's shut out.  The Wild put out a solid effort defensively against a offensive juggernaut with the likes of Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Alexander Semin, and Mike Green, holding them to 22 shots in the game (4-7-11=22), and it didn't hurt that the Capitals were in Carolina the night before.

Chuck Kobasew scored the first goal of the game, his first point of the season, in the first period burying a great feed across the goal crease by Andrew Brunette.  Kobasew, who has been bothered by a groin injury this season, was moved to the first line with Antti Miettinen not playing because of an illness, played well along side Brunette and Mikko Koivu.  Koivu would later score the game winning goal late in the second period with the Wild on powerplay and with a delayed penalty being called.

Backstrom was just solid last night, making the easy saves along with a couple spectacular ones like this post to post save on Mike Knuble on the powerplay.

Backstrom, along with the defensive corps, was able to stymie the Capitals, frustrating them at times.  Brent Burns and Nick Schultz were a solid defensive pairing, and were often pitted against Ovechkin.  Just a good solid 60-minute effort by the Wild, one of the few ones that fans have seen in a long time.  If the Wild could play like this the rest of the season they'd be set =).

Notes:

•  I'm really starting to like Justin Falk-Clayton Stoner d-pairing.  For a pair of rookie defensemen they haven't made any glaring mistakes, they've just been solid.  Stoner didn't play well in camp so I had my reserves about him and Falk has impressed me so far.
• With all eyes on Martin Havlat after his agent Allan Walsh comments on his underuse in the Wild lineup, he did nada.  Havlat ended the night with one shot in 17:27 of ice time.
• Colton Gillies played his first NHL game since the 2008-2009 season and Casey Wellman made his home debut.  Gillies and Wellman replaced Guillame Latendresse (groin) and Miettinen (illness).
• When a sellout streak stops, it really stops.  I was surprised that the X wasn't sold out seeing as it was the Caps the Wild were playing.
• The Wild took only 2 penalties last night...YAY!

UP NEXT: Saturday vs. Chicago Blackhawks, 7:00pm CT

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Wild's Powerplay Prevails Over Oilers

With so much hoopla surrounding the team and the team itself putting an emphasis on the game, home openers are always my favorite games to go to.  The pre-game ceremonies were well done, as usual, with the introduction of some members of the inaugural (loudest ovation going to Darby and Walz), the announcement of the number one moment (Bruno's OT goal, obvious), and the introduction of the roster.  On to the game...

The Wild had a good game, not a solid 60 minutes (and as a Wild fan you start to expect the Wild to only play 2 solid periods of good hockey), but at least a good 45 minutes. The Wild came out pretty well in the first period, but they got bogged down by penalty troubles.  The Edmonton Oilers weren't able to connect on their powerplay chances early on as the penalty killers were on their game last night.  Antti Miettinen was able to get the Wild into the 2nd period with a 1-0 lead but the Wild did what they always do and came out sluggish in the 2nd.  For the first 10-15 minutes of the game it was all Edmonton, with Dustin Penner's powerplay tally and Tom Gilbert's rocket off of the face-off giving them a 2-1 advantage, but you never really felt like the game was out of the reach for the Wild.  The Wild were able to tally 3 unanswered goals, all on the powerplay,  two from Mikko Koivu and from Matt Cullen, and essentially put the game away.

Obviously the Wild was great on the powerplay against the Oilers going 4 for 6 last night and generating great opportunities with Cullen at the point and Brunette behind the net, the real question now will be whether or nor the Wild can generate those same chances even strength.  The pkers have to be the unsung heroes of the night with some debatable calls, but they were able to keep the Oilers in check sans the Penner goal.

Notes:

• Loud ovation for Pierre-Marc Bouchard when the players who weren't dressed were announced...and I giggled to myself at the polite applause when James Sheppard was announced (though I kind of felt bad when I saw him wave).
• I'm totally in love with Cullen now.  He was great on the powerplay and I definitely noticed him, in a good way, everytime he was on the ice. 
• Honestly, I didn't really notice the Oilers' young phenoms.  Taylor Hall and Jordan Eberle were non-factors throughout the game, and I only noticed Magnus Paajarvi because of his size and him drawing penalities (and occasionally falling down).
• I don't really like the new game programs, it's probably because it's still the same price as the old ones but now they're smaller (just a folded up poster-sized paper).
• Oh, and I'm kind of late on this, but a great article by Mike Russo on former Wild now Oiler Kurtis Foster.
• Question: Were the refs in this game NHL refs or replacement refs because some of the calls were absurd.

UP NEXT: Saturday vs. Columbus Blue Jackets, 7:00pm CT

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2010 Skills Competition

Yesterday the Wild held their skills competition and it was pretty fun for me and my brother, who got to meet Clayton Stoner, John Scott and Derek Boogaard for their autographs. You just don’t realize how gigantic some of these players are, especially Boogie and Scott, until you see them in person or are standing next to them. I was really disappointed that I couldn’t meet Mikko Koivu or Cal Clutterbuck, who were reserved for Season Ticket Holders…but oh well. I got my picture taken with the Stanley Cup (my only regret, thinking back now, is that I didn’t actually touch the cup…stupid aren’t I :|), bought a signed mystery mini-helmet (Derek Boogaard), watched some of the Gustavus-St. John’s game and watched the This Week in Hockey presentation with guests Phil Housley, Neal Broten, Mike Ramsey, Chuck Fletcher, and Todd Richards.

The skills competition was really interesting, green basically killed red in all of the events, but the best part was just watching the players be so laid back. Mikko was hilarious, hooking and smacking the high school players with his stick, taunting Tim Shaughnessy, the Hill-Murray goalie. Bruno was hilarious too, running from bench to bench, doing some interviews and just being the funny Bruno that he is. Probably the funniest moments were when Mikko tripped over himself in the puck control relay while he was head to head with Eric Belanger, Greg Zanon getting taken out by Shaughnessy on his shootout attempt, and John Scott’s shootout “attempt”.
I learned today that I’m a good influence because the best part of the day was probably when we got home and my brother started saying Wild players’ names. Before today he only knew Owen Nolan, Mikko Koivu, and Brent Burns, and now he practically knows the whole roster…his favorites to say are Cal Clutterbuck and Derek Boogaard :)

P.S. I know that this is my first post since the home opener, and I promise to be more diligent in blogging :))

NEXT UP: Wednesday vs. Detroit Red Wings, 7:00pm CT

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Wild Rally Back from 3-0 to Win 4-3 in OT

It's a good thing that I decided not to leave the home opener early like I was planning to after it was 3-0 at the end of 2, but who would have blamed me or anyone who left after 2 the way that the Wild were playing.

The first period was uneventful, mainly because most people in attendance were still wrapped up with the Twin-Tigers game (and the crowd roared with applause and cheer when the Twins won). The second period was just an utter disaster. Passes weren't on target, the Wild couldn't get any sustained pressure in the offensive zone, and when the Wild were able to get shots, they were either not on target or they were shooting into the body of Ducks player (note that they were shooting into the Ducks player, not that the Ducks players were blocking them). And like Richards said in his postgame, the defensemen were trying to create something that wasn't there and stepping up in the offensive zone at unnecessary times creating odd man rushed (I saw a 4-on-1 twice) and the Wild, like in the Columbus game, were scrambling in their defensive zone, and just like that it was 3-0 Ducks. The lazy and lackluster play of the first 40 minutes of the game took the fans out of the game, but the turning point in the game has to be the George Parros vs. John Scott fight, it definitely woke the crowd up again.



Mikko Koivu, Petr Sykora, and Eric Belanger scored in the third to tie up the game, and Andrew Brunette score in the overtime on the powerplay after James Wisniewski took a retalatory penalty on Kyle Brodziak to secure the overtime win for the Wild, and Todd Richards' first win as an NHL coach.

Fans saw in the third period how well Todd Richards system could work for the Wild, we'll see if the Wild can do what they did in the third for a full 60 minutes.

Notes:

• Pierre-Marc Bouchard was a late scratch due to ongoing headaches. He'll be out indefinitely until the organization figures out what's wrong with him.
• Loudest ovations during lineups to Brent Burns, Koivu, Niklas Backstrom and Cal Clutterbuck.
• A Wild player got hit in the first period and was just dumped into the bench...can't seem to find who it is though, anyone know?
• Joffrey Lupul took a puck to the face in the first period, but came back in the second to score the first goal for the Ducks.
• The Wild actually won in the faceoff department, winning 63 percent of the faceoffs, with Koivu winning 76 percent of his faceoffs.
• Can you honestly tell me that the home opener was a sellout when the suites and club levels were mainly empty, the lower level had a bunch of rows that were empty, and the end opposite of the one that I was sitting across was just bare?...Well, it is tickets distributed, not how many people actually show up...

UP NEXT: Thursday @ Los Angeles Kings, 9:30pm CT

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2009-10 NHL Season Predicitons

With the 2009-10 NHL season about to get underway, here are my predictions for the season:

Western Conference:
1. San Jose Sharks
2. Detroit Red Wings
3. Vancouver Canucks
4. Anaheim Ducks
5. Chicago Blackhawks
6. Calgary Flames
7. Dallas Stars
8. Columbus Blue Jackets
9. Minnesota Wild
10. St. Louis Blues
11. Nashville Predators
12. Edmonton Oilers
13. Los Angeles Kings
14. Phoenix Coyotes
15. Colorado Avalanche

Eastern Conference:
1. Washington Capitals
2. Pittsburgh Penguins
3. Boston Bruins
4. Philadelphia Flyers
5. New Jersey Devils
6. Carolina Hurricanes
7. New York Rangers
8. Buffalo Sabres
9. Ottawa Senators
10. Montreal Candiens
11. Florida Panthers
12. Atlanta Thrashers
13. Toronto Maple Leafs
14. Tampa Bay Lightning
15. New York Islanders

Conference Finals:
Western: Detroit Red Wings vs. Vancouver Canucks
Eastern: Washington Capitals vs. Philadelphia Flyers

Stanley Cup Finals: Vancouver Canucks vs. Philadelphia Flyers
Winner=Philadelphia Flyers

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Wild Preseason Schedule Released

The Minnesota Wild officially announced their preseason schedule today, which consists of seven games, four on the road and three at home. Preseason tickets will go on sale August 22.

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Wild 2009-2010 Regular Season Schedule Released

Highlights from the schedule:

• Season Opener - October 3 @ Columbus Blue Jackets
• Home Opener - October 6 vs. Anaheim Ducks
  
• October 30 vs. New York Rangers: The return of Marian Gaborik...I cheered him when he left, I'll boo him when he returns
• October 31 @ Pittsburgh Penguins, January 11 vs. Pittsburgh Penguins
• January 2 vs. New Jersey Devils: Jacques Lemaire and Brian Rolston return to Minnesota
• Final Game of the Regular Season - April 10 vs. Dallas Stars
• Note: The Olympic break will be February 15-28.

Regular season single-game tickets will go on sale September 12, pre-season game tickets will go on sale August 22.

Wild Press Release, PDF Schedule, Complete NHL 2009-2010 Season Schedule

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Conference Finals Predictions

My predictions during the playoffs have not been great to say the least, but I'm already this far along, I might as well continue...

Western Conference
2 Detroit Red Wings vs. 4 Chicago Blackhawks - Detroit in 7

Eastern Conference
4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. 6 Carolina Hurricanes - Carolina in 7

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Conference Finals Schedule

2009 EASTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
SERIES M		#4 vs. #6	Network
Monday, May 18		at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN, RDS
Thursday, May 21		at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN, RDS
Saturday, May 23		at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
Tuesday, May 26		at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
* Friday, May 29		at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
* Sunday, May 31		at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
* Tuesday, June 2		at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
2009 WESTERN CONFERENCE FINALS
SERIES N		#2 vs. #4	Network
Sunday, May 17		at Detroit, 3:00 p.m.	NBC, TSN, RDS
Tuesday, May 19		at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN, RDS
Friday, May 22		at Chicago, 8:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
Sunday, May 24		at Chicago, 3:00 p.m.	NBC, CBC, RDS
* Wednesday, May 27		at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
* Saturday, May 30		at Chicago, 8:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
* Monday, June 1		at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS

- * denotes if necessary
- All Times are Eastern Standard Time

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IIHF World Championships Quarterfinals

So the qualification round in Switzerland is done and quarterfinal games will start tomorrow. Here's the schedule:

Quarterfinal

Wed, May 6

16:15

Russia

vs.

Belarus

Wed, May 6

20:15

Finland

vs.

USA

Thu, May 7

16:15

Canada

vs.

Latvia

Thu, May 7

20:15

Sweden

vs.

Czech Rep.

Semi-final

Fri, May 8

16:15

RUS/BLR

vs.

FIN/USA

Fri, May 8

20:15

CAN/LAT

vs.

SWE/CZE

Should be some interesting matchups...

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Round 2 Playoff Predictions

Eastern Conference

1 Boston Bruins vs. 6 Carolina - Boston in 7
2 Washington Capitals vs. 4 Pittsburgh Penguins - Pittsburgh in 6

Western Conference

2 Detroit Red Wings vs. 8 Anaheim Ducks - Detroit in 6
3 Vancouver Canucks vs. 4 Chicago Blackhawks - Vancouver in 7

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Round 2 Schedule

SERIES I	#1 vs. #6	NETWORK
Friday, May 1	at Boston, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS (JIP), TSN
Sunday, May 3	at Boston, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN
Wednesday, May 6	at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS (JIP), TSN
Friday, May 8	at Carolina, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS (JIP), TSN
*Sunday, May 10	at Boston, 7:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN
*Tuesday, May 12	at Carolina, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN
*Thursday, May 14	at Boston, TBD	TSN
SERIES J	#2 vs. #4	NETWORK
Saturday, May 2	at Washington, 1:00 p.m.	NBC, CBC, RDS
Monday, May 4	at Washington, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
Wednesday, May 6	at Pittsburgh, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
Friday, May 8	at Pittsburgh, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
*Saturday, May 9	at Washington, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
*Monday, May 11	at Pittsburgh, TBD	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
*Wednesday, May 13	at Washington, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, CBC, RDS
SERIES K	#2 vs. #8	NETWORK
Friday, May 1	at Detroit, 7:00 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN2
Sunday, May 3	at Detroit, 2:00 p.m.	NBC, TSN
Tuesday, May 5	at Anaheim, 10:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN
Thursday, May 7	at Anaheim, 10:30 p.m.	VERSUS, TSN
*Sunday, May 10	at Detroit, 5:00 p.m.	TSN
*Tuesday, May 12	at Anaheim, TBD	VERSUS, TSN
*Thursday, May 14	at Detroit, TBD	VERSUS, TSN
SERIES L	#3 vs. #4	NETWORK
Thursday, April 30	at Vancouver, 9:00 p.m.	CBC, VERSUS
Saturday, May 2	at Vancouver, 9:00 p.m.	CBC, VERSUS
Tuesday, May 5	at Chicago, 8:00 p.m.	CBC, VERSUS
Thursday, May 7	at Chicago, 8:00 p.m.	CBC, VERSUS
*Saturday, May 9	at Vancouver, 10:30 p.m	CBC, VERSUS
*Monday, May 11	at Chicago, 9:00 p.m.	CBC, VERSUS (JIP)
*Thursday, May 14	at Vancouver, TBD	CBC, VERSUS

* - if necessary

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Backstrom, Vezina Nominee

Here's the story from NHL.com

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Last Two Weeks, Quick Look at the Roster

Just a little over two weeks since the end of the season for the Minnesota Wild, and I've been a little depressed hockey-wise with no rooting interests in the Stanley Cup playoffs and the injuries that have been coming out of the woodworks since the beginning of the offseason have just made it worse.

Here's some bullet points of the the last two weeks since the season has ended and a look at the player situation right now for the Wild:

• Jacques Lemaire resigned from his position as head coach of the Minnesota Wild.
• Doug Risebrough's contract was "not renewed" by Craig Leipold, as the Wild will now have to search for a new GM and coach.
• Bad luck for players with last names beginning with 'B' in the organization as Bouchard, Brunette, Burns, Boogaard, Backstrom, and Bergeron are all currently injuried, along with Koivu, Schultz and Fritsche.
• Wild send 5 players to the IIHF WCs in Switzerland: Zidlicky (Cze), Miettinen (Fin), Harding (Can), Olvecky (Svk), and Madsen (Den).
• The search for a GM is on!

As for the Wild’s GM search, I hear Craig Leipold has more than 25 applicants, and he’s weeding out some names currently.

I also hear the interview process has begun, but I won’t start throwing names on unless I get it 100 percent confirmed that they’ve met. I am pretty sure one (Irish) bigwig that I’ve quoted in the past week was in town, but like I said, unless I find out that he was 100 percent in town to meet with the Wild, I’m not going to assume why he was here.

But you know things are getting down to the nitty gritty because suddenly candidates either don’t return calls or are hesitant to speak on the record. That typically means the process has reached a stage where everybody thinks they’ve got a chance for the job and don’t want to say anything to spoil their chances at it. ~Russo

Players under contract for the 09-10 season:

• Pierre-Marc Bouchard, C - concussion
  
• Mikko Koivu, C - knee
  
• Owen Nolan, R
• Andrew Brunette, L - knee
  
• Antti Miettinen, L
• Eric Belanger, C
• James Sheppard, C
• Colton Gillies, C
• Derek Boogaard, L - shoulder
  
• Cal Clutterbuck, R
• Craig Weller, R
• Kim Johnsson, D
• Brent Burns, D - concussion, shoulder
  
• Nick Schultz, D - concussion
  
• Marek Zidlicky, D
• John Scott, D
• Niklas Backstrom, G - hip

Restricted Free Agents:

• Benoit Pouliot, C
• Dan Fritsche, C - broken collarbone
• Peter Olvecky, L
• Danny Irmen, C
• Josh Harding, G

Unrestricted Free Agents:

• Marian Gaborik, L
• Stephane Veilleux, L
• Krys Kolanos, C
• Martin Skoula, D
• Marc-Andre Bergeron, D - back
  
• Kurtis Foster, D
• Tomas Mojzis, D
• Nolan Schaefer, G

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2009 IIHF World Championships

With the IIHF World Championships just two days away in Switzerland, I thought I'd throw up a little tidbit about the World Championships. The Wild will have 5 players playing for their countries during the World Championships which are Josh Harding (Can), Morten Madsen (Den), Antti Miettinen (Fin), Peter Olvecky (Svk), and Marek Zidlicky (Cze). Usually during the World Championships teams don't have their big names in place because of the NHL playoffs. There are some names that Wild fans might recognize on some rosters like Petteri Nummelin (Fin), Rickard Wallin (Swe), and Mattais Weinhandl (Swe). They haven't released the where the games will be broadcasted yet, but people can watch the games online at the IIHF website for all 56 games at 39.95 Euros (51.79 USD) or a single game for 6.95 Euros (9.00 USD).

Here's the complete schedule for the games:

Remember that Zurich/Berne is 7 hours ahead of the central time zone.

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Next GM, Injury News

The question now after Craig Leipold "didn't renew" Doug Risebrough's contract is: Who will be the Minnesota Wild's general manager? Michael Russo threw out some names which includes Pat Quinn, Doug MacLean, Jay Feaster, Rick Dudley, Neil Smith, Pierre McGuire, Chuck Fletcher, Ron Hextall and Peter Chiarelli. And...uh...Jacques Lemaire has already told Russo that he's not intereseted in being the GM. Whoever it is will have to make a lot of major decisions this offseason, and they'll be important ones, starting with who will be the next head coach.

News on other fronts:
From Russo's article:

Backstrom said Thursday he might need surgery.

"I saw a doctor today, and the team doctors, and we have to decide now in a couple days if I need surgery," Backstrom said. "I need to get other opinions, and also from back home in Finland. It's tough for me because everything's in English, so I need someone to translate to me so I know exactly what's going on."

Backstrom said he hoped to talk to Gaborik so he can see his hip specialist, Marc Philippon of the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Vail, Colo. Backstrom said the recovery from surgery "is speculated, but in my mind, I'll be ready by the start of the season."

Isn't that just great :( ... Andrew Brunette had successful reconstructive right knee surgery, and Derek Boogaard will have surgery on his right shoulder on Tuesday.

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Risebrough Fired by Leipold

Via Russo and NHL.com:

Minnesota Wild Owner, Craig Leipold, announced today that the organization will not renew the contract of President and General Manager, Doug Risebrough, beyond the 2008-2009 season.

"The entire Minnesota Wild organization is forever indebted to Doug for his substantial efforts in establishing this franchise's solid foundation and winning tradition," said Leipold. "The positive impact of Doug's service will be felt for many years to come. We wish Doug the very best."

The search for a new General Manager will begin immediately. The first order of business for the incoming General Manager will be to select the team's next Head Coach.

Until a replacement is found, Assistant General Manager Tom Lynn, will be acting-General Manager.

From Craig Leipold:

Wild fans,

I wanted to personally be the one to tell you of my very difficult decision not to renew Doug Risebrough’s contract beyond the 2008-2009 season. I have agonized over this decision for some time now, but ultimately, I reached the conclusion that change was in order.

I cannot begin to thank Doug enough for all that he has done for this organization over the past nine years. When he arrived he brought instant credibility, expertise and extraordinary work ethic to an expansion franchise in desperate need of those things. He then worked tirelessly to build the Minnesota Wild into one of the premier franchises in the NHL. So much of our success – on and off the ice – is directly attributable to Doug’s leadership and his legacy will remain evident for years to come in the aura of success and winning tradition that defines this place. I know that you’ll join me in wishing Doug and his family the very best.

The search for a new General Manager will begin immediately. The first order of business for the incoming General Manager will be to select the next Head Coach.

On behalf of our entire organization, we thank Wild fans for the incredible support you’ve given us.

Craig Leipold

It's something that Wild fans have been calling for since the beginning of the season, and with the disappointment of not making the playoffs, it doesn't come as a shocker...but it is. The Wild are now a team without a GM and a head coach, and with a team that was already facing a lot of questions going into the offseason, the main question will now be...

Who will be the next GM of the Minnesota Wild?

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The Best of Jacques Lemaire

It's just HILARIOUS...Jacques' sound bites will be missed...I love how he laughs at his own jokes, LOL.

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Quarterfinals Picks

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
1 Boston Bruins vs. 8 Montreal Canadiens - Boston in 6
2 Washington Capitals vs. 7 New York Rangers - Washington in 6
3 New Jersey Devils vs. Carolina Hurricanes - New Jersey in 6
4 Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Philadelphia Flyers - Philadelphia in 7

Western Conference Quarterfinals
1 San Jose Sharks vs. Anaheim Ducks - San Jose in 7
2 Detroit Red Wings vs. 7 Columbus Blue Jackets - Detroit in 6
3 Vancouver Canucks vs. 6 St. Louis Blues - Vancouver in 6
4 Chicago Blackhawks vs. 5 Calgary Flames - Chicago in 6

Read more...