Wilderness Walk 9-15-2013: Day 4 - The Open Scrimmage

Good morning Wilderness! Training camp is underway and we are just 2 more sleeps away from our first pre-season game! It is indeed a wonderful time of year, hockey is back and I may actually have a thing or two to say in these little blurbs before we get to the daily links.

First of all, thanks for sticking it out here all summer. We didn't have quite the same fireworks this 4th of July and certainly no excitement over the will they, wont they lockout drama. A welcome change to be sure, but news could be very sparse at times.

In other news, if you have already signed up for the Hockey Wilderness Fantasy Hockey League you will want to check the Fanpost on this. Interest has boomed this year and I have started a second league to accommodate. If you have not signed up, there is still room so contact me through the post, twitter, email or carrier pigeon and I'll get you set up.

A quick reminder for those of you not glued to the tube for Sunday football (or for those of you with a portable device), the Wild will open their doors to the public at 10:45 am today for an inter-squad scrimmage. Puck drops at 11 am, so get out to St. Paul and catch some mid-September hockey!

Wild News

With Depth on "D", Minnesota Wild Have Decisions to Make | Gone Puck Wild
With bolstered depth on the blue line, the Minnesota Wild have some difficult decisions to make in the near future.

HockeyBuzz.com - Minnesota Wild 2013 Training Camp Good, Bad, and Ugly.
A lot of good to look forward to this season, but the ugly is real ugly.

Wild's Brodin more than surpasses first impressions | Star Tribune
The story of Craig Button being sent to Sweden to scout the wrong defenseman.

Wild notes: News of departures is hard to take | Star Tribune
Clayton Stoner was married this summer, and everyone was there for his 4th of July wedding in Mexico.

Sunday's open-to-public scrimmage will be Wild's first big chance to evaluate | Russo's Rants | StarTribune.com
Day 3 of training camp is in the books and the one thing that is very clear: this is a lot less frantic a pace as last January’s crash course, six- or seven-day camp.

NHL 2013: Wild head into season with expectations high, pressure for progress even stronger | Star Tribune
The celebration over Minnesota's first-in-five-years playoff appearance was muffled, considering the buzz the Wild created before the season and the struggle they endured just to qualify.

Wild's Brodziak hopes to rebound after lost season | Star Tribune
Kyle talks about the disappointing season behind him.

Wild notes: Goalie equipment downsized | Star Tribune
"I’m surprised we’re even still allowed to wear helmets," Harding joked.

Minnesota Wild, 2013-14 (Puck Daddy Gold Medal Preview) - Yahoo Sports
Finally, to replace Clutterbuck's edge, the Wild signed beloved winger Matt Cooke, much to the chagrin of every other fan base in the NHL, all of whom wanted Cooke on their team because of their strong affection for him.

NHL Pre-season Predictions: Central Division – No. 3 Minnesota Wild - The Hockey News
The Wild got back to the post-season for the first time since 2008 after last year's lockout, but will lean on their young forwards a little harder this season. Is the pipeline prepared to handle the load?

Tending the Fields

The Team of 18,001: Top 10 Prospects: #5 Darcy Kuemper
A look at everyone's favorite 12 year-old goalie.

Off the Trail

Meet the Winnipeg Jets--Morrissey Heads Spectacular 2013 Draft Class | Gone Puck Wild
There's no question the Winnipeg Jets were one of the biggest winners to walk away from this past June's NHL Entry Draft.

NHL will not review high-sticking calls this season as questions remain - The Hockey News
Remember all that business about video review on high sticking calls? Yea, just forget it (for now).

On the Pitch

Cosmos beat Minnesota 1-0, take first place in NASL - Empire of Soccer
Minnesota falls to New York in a tight contest on the east coast.