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  • Wild Owner Leipold On Kaprizov Extension: 'I Kind Of Think We're There'

    Image courtesy of © Matt Blewett-Imagn Images
    Thomas Williams

    By Thomas Williams -

    That's Wild

    • We're getting some good news right before the Minnesota Wild start truly preparing for the 2025-26 regular season. Owner Craig Leipold appears very confident that a Kirill Kaprizov contract extension will get done, in a recent interview with The Athletic. [The Athletic]
    • General manager Bill Guerin appeared to be having a conflict with young center Marco Rossi, but we have to ask: Is it just a creation from what everything has been written in the media? Does the GM of the Wild truly not care for a 23-year-old who just scored 60 points? [Hockey Wilderness]
    • Former Wild star Zach Parise has been named to the US Hockey Hall of Fame. [Pioneer Press]

    Off the trail...

    • The fuzziness of Connor McDavid's future in Edmonton, explained. Why it isn't guaranteed that the best hockey player on the planet stays with the Oilers beyond this upcoming season. [TheScore]
    • Who the top rated players are in EA Sports' NHL 26 video game. [ESPN]
    • It's official, the NHL and NHLPA have agreed to implement rules that are part of the next CBA (that is slated to kick in next September) for the upcoming season, including the playoff salary cap. [Sportsnet]
    • McDavid is this year, but as soon as July 1, 2026, arguably the best defenseman in the world, Quinn Hughes is eligible to sign a contract extension with the Vancouver Canucks. And while that team suffers their own uncertainty, Hughes says he can handle all the noise that the looming decision has. [Sportsnet]
    By Thomas Williams  

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    raithis
    15 hours ago, Scalptrash said:

    Lame. Thinking most people will still call it the “X”.

    Same.  I really don't like that's it's named after a casino.  It's not that I'm particularly fond of Xcel, but I just kind of hate how intertwined sports and gambling have become.

    I'm saying it right here, right now:

    If I ever refer to the Wild home arena as the "X" or "Xcel" or "Xcel Energy Center", I did not make a mistake.  It was intentional.

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    raithis
    12 hours ago, Sam said:

    Hearing the announcer say “It’s an Excel Energy power play!” Grand Casino power play doesn’t have quite the same ring to it..

    I'm guessing that whenever there's a goal by the Wild, the jumbotron will show a slot machine with hockey sticks and a bunch of pucks will pour out of it or something. 

    Depending on how prevalent that stuff is, it may make me want to go to games less often - and I already only make it to 0-2 games a year.  It's been a VERY long time since I went to 3.  I didn't make it to a game last year, so hoping to do one this year. 

    Recently, part of the appeal of going to a game was to avoid all the gambling ads since they are all over TV when you watch a game.

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    Quebec1648

    Now that Grand Casino is the sponsor, will they have Wild players promoting the Casino? When we see the adds for the casino on TV, I can imagine they may now feature references to the Wild on occasion and perhaps even a player appearance.

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    mnfaninnc
    On 9/5/2025 at 1:05 AM, Sam said:

    Hearing the announcer say “It’s an Excel Energy power play!” Grand Casino power play doesn’t have quite the same ring to it..

    It doesn't, but we all won't care if it is more effective! 🚨

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    mnfaninnc
    On 9/5/2025 at 1:48 PM, raithis said:

    Recently, part of the appeal of going to a game was to avoid all the gambling ads since they are all over TV when you watch a game.

    One nice thing about getting the game on ESPN+ is I can tune in late and skip through the commercials and intermissions and usually make it to the end within 10 minutes of the end, so it's almost live. 

    Of course that makes it tough to jump on a game thread, but, I don't multitask all that well anyway. 

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    raithis
    On 9/5/2025 at 6:13 PM, Quebec1648 said:

    Now that Grand Casino is the sponsor, will they have Wild players promoting the Casino? When we see the adds for the casino on TV, I can imagine they may now feature references to the Wild on occasion and perhaps even a player appearance.

    Why would they?

    It's not like the Wild were shown plugging in the power cords and saying how great electricity was.  Why would they be shilling for the casino?

    They'll be the logos on the backdrop when doing interviews, etc, but it isn't like they have to actively promote it.

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