Shooter Strikes Again: Don’t Count on the Wild Going Anywhere Except the WCF

Yesterday, there was a blog post over on Kukla's Korner that caused quite a stir. The post was basically a hook, line and sinker post about a newspaper article that Charlie Walters aka “Shooter” wrote in the Saint Paul Pioneer Press.

The article is still causing some blow back to day on twitter today. Check out Bruce Ciskie's twitter feed for the fire works.

Apparently, the story in question just keeps disappearing, or someone at the Pioneer Press edited the story after it created an unneeded fire storm. Why? Because there is no actual evidence provided in that story at all, sure anyone can say that the Wild are moving, but you might want to actually prove that you have some hard evidence in your article in question before you submit it, or at least ask someone other than a little blue bird. Like most of us suspected, Shooter put an article in the paper and it wasn’t based in any fact what-so-ever, probably got called on it and took it down or the paper took it down.

Former Editor B.Reynolds, who’s decided to retire from hockey blogging and move off of the Minnesota Wilderness beat, came out of his self-imposed retirement to respond to this fallacious rumor.

Shooter: Wild could leave Minnesota?

Over on Kukla’s Korner, there was a blog post this morning making reference to a report that the Minnesota Wild could be leaving Minnesota. Of course, the story was written by Charley Walters, aka. Shooter. If you go to the story, it appears to that the article has already been edited, because if you go the link you will not see the article text that is mention in this blog post... WTF? Hum, interesting.

Reports are out that the Minnesota Wild have recorded a $30 Million loss this past season; according to Charley Walters of TwinCities.com out of St. Paul.

Is the State of Hockey at risk of losing their second National Hockey League Franchise?

It has been 20 years, nearly to the day, that the Minnesota North Stars packed up and moved to the sunbelt and became the Dallas Stars; and low attendance and lost revenue during seasons where the team did not play up to the standards of their fan base.

The NHL granted Minnesota the Wild in the 2000-01 Season (though announced back in 1997 that the team would be part of the expansion); and after finally making the playoffs this season after not qualifying for the past four seasons. The lockout may be in part to blame for the $30 Million loss this past season. If the season had started on time than there would have been more revenue generated – but also more money paid out to employees’ and game day crew. Another hit to the books for the Wild would be the $10 Million bonuses’ for each Zach Parise and Ryan Suter. The two big ticket UFA’s from last summer where each awarded a lockout proof bonus.

A short term financial fall has hit the State of Hockey: the questions that remain to be answered is if it is just a case of spending money to make money or if this hit is just the start of a financial mess with economic down times across the country? or may Minnesota lose another NHL franchise in the coming years? Time can only reveal the answers to these questions.