Good morning all, and welcome to the walk.

I'm your guest host, as Bryan is shirking duties and heading to do something somewhere that isn't going to opening night with me. Screw him.

Moving on.

• I heard the Leafs won last night. That's nice. Toronto fans shouldn't get used to it.
• I hear Don Cherry made an ass of himself last night. That's nice. We should all be used to that by now.
• Matt Cooke is the leading scorer. Puke.
• Jaromir Jagr scored his 1600th career point. He's old.
• Boston lost. Schadenfreude.
• The Yankees lost. Schadenfreude

Season opener events:

The Wild's Wake-Up Rally, presented by Kwik Trip, is this Friday, Oct. 7, from 6-9 a.m. along Kellogg Boulevard in front of the Saint Paul RiverCentre. Fans are invited to make the rally a part of their morning commute, driving eastbound by the Science Museum, and westbound outside RiverCentre. Breakfast items include milk and banana bread provided by Kwik Trip, coffee by Cameron's Coffee and newspapers by the Star Tribune and Pioneer Press. Coke products, Wild calendars, magnetic schedules and pocket schedules will also be provided. Also, KFAN's Power Trip Morning Show will be broadcasting live.

On Saturday, Oct. 8, from 4:30-6:30 p.m. the Wild will host a Pre-Game Party at Gate 2. The party will include live music (Uncle Chunk, as well as the St. Paul Como Park High School band), the KFAN pre-game show (5-6:30 p.m.), autographs from NHL alumni as well as food and beverage.

At Saturday's game, all fans will receive a free Minnesota Wild calendar courtesy of FOX Sports North, Wells Fargo and Xcel Energy, as well as a Minnesota Wild Hospitality Card featuring special offers from area restaurants. In pre-game ceremonies, the Wild will pay tribute to deceased "teammates" Derek Boogaard and Pavol Demitra. As a part of the tribute, beginning Saturday, Wild players will start wearing commemorative stickers on their helmets.

Special thanks to our new sponsor, Bennett's Chop and Railhouse. Join Joe and the crew for their Season Opener pre-party from 4-6 pm Saturday. Live music, Prizes, Shot for a shot contest, Drink specials, Wild dinner specials, Pictures with the Hamm's Bear, Autographs with Jack Carlson, and as always free shuttle rides to and from the game on the Bennett's shuttle bus from Gate 1 to the restaurant. Start and end every Wild game at Bennett's. Save on parking, spend it on their fabulous food and great drink specials. I'll be there, will you?

Should be a great time. Reservations accepted at www.bennettschopandrailhouse.com

The StarTribune's look at the start of the season (in case you didn't read some yesterday)

• NHL 2011-12 preview: Predicting the conferences
• NHL 2011-12 preview: Russo's predictions A look at award winners from 2010-11 and Michael Russo's predictions for 2011-12:
• With Lundin on shelf, Scandella gets a chance Mike Yeo said he believes Marco Scandella will be a top defenseman in the NHL for a long time
• Wild's Opening Night Roster
• Dany Heatley: Risk and reward As Dany Heatley sits, sweat dripping from his curly hair, he looks around the locker room with a playful grin
• Four things to watch about the Wild The consensus is the Wild will once again be a playoff spectator come April
• Farewell to Nystrom, hello to youngsters As the preseason ended and the Wild began preparing for Saturday's regular-season opener, one thing became clear to General Manager Chuck Fletcher and coach Mike Yeo: It was time to find out more about the youngsters on the team

More on the Wild's North Shore Adventure from the local scribes 

• Rick Lubbers: Duluth would go Wild today, if team gave us the chance | Duluth News Tribune | Duluth, Minnesota Hello Minnesota Wild players and coaches - welcome to your practices in Duluth. If we may bring up one small gripe, it’s that we wish you had chosen to spend some time bonding with your fans here.
• Former Bulldog Coaching Wild Goaltenders Duluth, MN (Northland's NewsCenter) --- Hockey fans in the Northland may recognize one of the Wild's coaching staff. After all, his picture is scattered around AMSOIL Arena.
• Howie Blog " Wild impressed with the new Amsoil Arena
• Wild team-bonding trip to the Northland draws praise