Wild announce 2021-22 schedule

The Minnesota Wild open a season on the road for a seventh straight season, but the newly-released 2021-22 NHL schedule handed them a glut of home games in the latter stages of the season.

The Wild only have three home games in the month of October – the fewest in team history. However, they have 25 home games after New Years – the most in team history – which includes the New Year’s Day Winter Classic at Target Field against the St. Louis Blues and a nine-game homestand in late March which will be the longest in franchise history.

They also finish the season with six of their final eight games at home.

The schedule has 26 games against fellow Central Division teams and 24 (3 against each team) in the Pacific Division – the other half of the Western Conference. The Wild play each Eastern Conference team once at home and once on the road.

Highlights:

• Season Opener: Friday, October 15 at Anaheim
• Home Opener: Tuesday, October 19 vs Winnipeg
• Winter Classic: Saturday, January 1 vs St Louis at Target Field
• First game against Seattle: Thursday, October 28 in SEA (4/22 in St Paul)
• First divisional game vs Arizona: Wednesday, November 10 at ARI
• Nine-game homestand (longest in team history): March 13-31
• 2022 NHL All-Star Game in Vegas: Saturday, February 5
• 2022 Olympic Break (tentative): February 7-22

The schedule as released does include a two-week Olympic break, but the NHL and NHLPA have still not yet come to an agreement on players’ participation in the Beijing Winter Games.

The Wild announcement included this caveat:
"No final agreement or decision has been made to this point regarding the possible participation of NHL Players in the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. Talks remain ongoing. Subject to reaching agreement with the NHL Players’ Association and the International Ice Hockey Federation on all outstanding issues, including appropriate COVID-19 insurance for NHL Players, the League has agreed, per the Collective Bargaining Agreement, to pause from Feb. 7-22, 2022 to accommodate NHL Player participation in the Olympic Games. The NHL and the NHL Players’ Association will retain full authority to decide not to participate should COVID-19 conditions worsen or otherwise pose a threat to the health and safety of NHL Players, or for any other reason that may warrant such decision. In the event NHL Players participate in the 2022 Winter Olympics, the NHL regular season will resume on Wednesday, Feb. 23. If, for whatever reason, there is no NHL Player participation in the Olympics, a revised Regular Season schedule will be released which, to the greatest extent possible, will adopt the dates and games reflected in the schedule contemplating Olympic participation. "

For more information, including ticket details and the complete 2021-22 schedule – click here for the schedule release page on the Wild website.