The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Energy Center.
The Wild were founded on June 25, 1997, but did not start playing until the 2000–01 season. They were the first NHL franchise in Minnesota since the Minnesota North Stars moved to Dallas, Texas in 1993. They lost their first game 3–1 to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and recorded their first win against the Tampa Bay Lightning five games later. In the 2002–03 season, the team made their first Stanley Cup playoffs appearance, making a surprising run to the Western Conference Finals.
The team was officially named the Wild at an unveiling at the Aldrich Area on January 22, 1998, with the song "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf playing over the arena's speaker system. The Minnesota Wild announced its first major sponsorship agreement with MasterCard from First USA. It was the earliest that First USA had ever signed an agreement before a team began play (31 months). The State of Minnesota adopted legislation in April 1998 to loan $65 million to the City of Saint Paul to fund 50% of the estimated $130 million project costs for the Xcel Energy Center in Saint Paul. The legislation also provided that only $48 million of the loan needed to be repaid if the team met the requirements to have an agreement in place during the lease term with the Minnesota Amateur Sports Commission. The City of Saint Paul issued an additional $65 million in bonds, with roughly 90% of the debt service on the bonds and the repayment of the state loan coming from scheduled rent and payment instead of taxes from the Minnesota Wild. Deconstruction of the Saint Paul Civic Center began soon after. Designs were announced for the Xcel Energy Center and a groundbreaking ceremony for the Xcel Energy Center was hosted in Saint Paul.
The logo depicts both a forest landscape and the silhouette of a wild animal. The "eye" of the "wild animal" is the north star, in tribute to the departed Minnesota North Stars as well as the state's motto L'Étoile du Nord, meaning "The Star of the North.