The Minnesota Wild Hockey Team is back on the ice after an agreement on a labor deal between National Hockey League players and the league ended a four-month lockout that began in Sept. 2012.The Memorandum of Understanding agreement was agreed to by both players and the league Jan. 9, officially marking the end of the 2012-2013 NHL season lockout.
NHL training camps followed the announcement, as well as the reestablishment of the 48-game regular season, which begins Jan. 19. The Wild play their first official game Saturday, Jan. 19 at 7:00 p.m. against the Colorado Avalanche.
Minnesota Wild fans have long-awaited the return to the ice, as the Wild signed free-agents Zach Parise, of the New Jersey Devils, and Ryan Suter, of the Nashville Predators, on July 4, 2012 to 13-year, $98 million contracts each.
Both Suter, former alternate captain of the Predators, and Parise, former captain of the Devils, had success on their previous teams. On July 10, 2012, the Wild named both Parise and Suter alternate captains.
A native of Bloomington, Minn., Parise played at Shattuck-St. Mary’s in Faribault, Minn. for prep-school. He then went on to play Division-I college hockey at the University of North Dakota. As captain of the Devils, Parise led New Jersey to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2012. The Devils lost to the Los Angeles Kings.
Suter is from Madison, Wisconsin and played for the Wisconsin Badgers for one year after playing for the USA’s Hockey National Development Team in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Wild fans have high hopes for a successful season with the editions of Suter and Parise. Along with the new players, the Wild is backed by Mikko Koivu and Dany Heatley.
The Wild played in an intersquad scrimmage Wednesday night. The Red team beat the White team 4-1.
Catch the Wild’s first game this Saturday at 7:00 p.m. against the Colorado Avalanche.
Margeaux Dittrich is the Arts & Entertainment Editor for The Spartan Speaks.
