Minnesota Wild Kick Off Their Season Tonight at Xcel

Minnesota sports fans can finally rejoice. Despite their baseball team finishing off another 90+ losing season and their football team starting 1-3, many fans are ecstatic that hockey is back tonight. This 2013 season thankfully is not being marred by a lock out, which left the 2012 season shortened and starting late into January. That is not the case in 2013, a season filled with hope for many that this will finally be the year the Wild step out and make a splash in the landscape of the NHL. And to add to the great buzz surrounding the Wild, the team just announced an 5-year contract extension for one of their best players, Jason Pominville. The Wild kick off tonight at the Xcel Energy Center against the Los Angeles Kings, an early test for this up and coming club. The Kings are only a shortened season removed from winning the Stanley Cup -- they defeated the New Jersey Devils in 2012 to win it all. Many fans are excited for what is to come for this club -- the team has a strong core that is growing more formidable with each year. They have the potential to be a powerhouse in the NHL for years to come -- so here is to hoping this year is the first of many in which the Wild are a force to be reckoned with in the league. Things are good, hockey is finally back. We get to check out Ryan Suter and the rest of the Wild battling for pucks, roughing up opponents, scoring goals, and celebrating to the ruckus of the fog horn at the Xcel. Things are good in the State of Hockey. Photos via: Google