Wrigley Field outdoor game set; Wild signs two minor leaguers, one with familiar name
Posted on July 6th, 2008 – 11:03 AMBy Michael Russo
According to a knowledgeable source, it’s official. The NHL’s second outdoor Winter Classic will take place New Year’s Day at the storied Wrigley Field when the Blackhawks take on the Stanley Cup-champion Detroit Red Wings.
An announcement is expected next week in the days leading up to the three-day inaugural “Blackhawks Convention” at the Chicago Hilton.
The outdoor game has been in the works for some time but finally approved last week when NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman met with the Blackhawks, Cubs and Chicago Mayor Richard Daley.
Last New Year’s Day, the Penguins beat the Sabres in a shootout on Sidney Crosby’s winner in front of an NHL-record crowd of 71,217 at Ralph Wilson Stadium.
There were a few other teams and cities hoping for this upcoming season’s outdoor game, but the Blackhawks and Wrigley Field got the bid over Yankee Stadium, which is closing this year.
Wild President and GM Doug Risebrough has said that the Wild will someday want a game, but it’s not feasible until the Gophers’ new football stadium is up and running.
In other news, the Wild made two minor-league signings Sunday.
The Wild signed goalie Barry Brust to a two-year deal and right wing Jesse Schultz, the cousin of Wild defenseman Nick Schultz, to a one-year deal.
Brust, 24, went 24-16-3 with a 2.27 goals against average (sixth in the AHL) and .919 save percentage (sixth in the AHL) last year for the Houston Aeros. Brust is originally a third-round pick by the Wild in 2002.
Schultz, 25, scored 26 goals and 66 points for the Calder Cup-champion Chicago Wolves last season. He had 14 points in 24 playoff games.
Jesse is the son of Nick’s father’s brother.
Nick and Jesse grew up together in the small town of Strasbourg, Sask., and they’ll at the very least get to skate together in training camp.
“We grew up playing together our whole lives,” Nick said via text. “I am excited. He signed in a minute. Look forward to playing with him again, just like old times.”
See a resemblance between Jesse and Nick?
Jesse Nick
59 Responses to "Wrigley Field outdoor game set; Wild signs two minor leaguers, one with familiar name"
Nice! Go jesse! Hope to see that outdoor gm here soon!
Russo:
Can we assume that Jesse Schultz’s contract is a two-way deal like Brust’s?
So basically what we’re saying here is the Wild have done absolutely nothing.
So basically what we’re saying here is the Wild have done absolutely nothing.
What do you mean? DR is fly fishing right now, I am sure he is going to bring back 18,500 fish!
SGS…18,568 already fished in… 
Green*…no, I wasn’t lumping SK into the top tier. You attacked a deatil, not the basic point being that:
The Wild have never signed a top tier UFA. Ever.
Oh…and yes, if you look at this off season, Burkie hasn’t done much of anything anything but whine. However, if you look at the previous 2 cup winners, you’ll find the names Holland and Burke on the Cup. (If it has been to the engraver since the Wings won the cup).
And you also missed the point about ‘trying’. They do not HAVE to rest their laurels on the fact that they told everyone that they ‘tried’.
They ‘DID’.
kj- you have to admit the CBJs have signed top flight free agents and look what they’ve done.
Didn’t they sign Sergay Federov after the lockout season? Now they landed someone else this year- what’s his name?
It’s a sad state of affairs when you’re needing to compare yourselves to the CBJs just to feel good about your team.
The Wild have never signed a top tier UFA. Ever.
Will the Kim Johnsson shots ever end? 
The Wild have never signed a top tier UFA. Ever.
they haven’t but, i don’t think they even went after any top tier talent before the year they aquired yawnson. i’m saying the history is short.
you used SK to support your point. cutting down the details is how you weaken the argument that the wild can’t sign top tier talent.
Oh…and yes, if you look at this off season, Burkie hasn’t done much of anything anything but whine. However, if you look at the previous 2 cup winners, you’ll find the names Holland and Burke on the Cup. (If it has been to the engraver since the Wings won the cup).
you say burke wouldn’t say he tried. i said he doesn’t have to because he didn’t even do that. burke is bad example.
And you also missed the point about ‘trying’. They do not HAVE to rest their laurels on the fact that they told everyone that they ‘tried’.
i don’t see anyone resting on anything.
smuggla…I try not to go there.
SGS with the touchdown!
who are some of the players the wild are going after? will any of them sign soon?
Right kj, things are bad but they’re not that bad… yet.
The Wild is trying to land Bujar Amidovski (Trois-Rivières Caron & Guay). He’s a center who is great in shootouts. The Wild management is currently in negotiations with his agent.
Whatever smuggla…
Yeah, as a Wild fan, this isn’t big news (other than, if goaltending depth has ever kept you up at night, you should sleep like a baby now). But this is fantastic for Aeros fans all the way around. I’m very happy we’ve picked up a solid, proven point contributer. And from one of our biggest rivals no less. Heh. Suck it, Wolves!
Plus, my Brusty… *ear to ear smile*
From last post, Bulldog. You do not fully understand the Cap.
When you criticize the Wild for never signing a top tier player, remember, in the early years there was no reason to sign a top tier player because they were developing a team.
So, there have been only the years since the lockout where a player may have been a real advantage. And, maybe only this year in fact that a signing would have been important.
So, there were only a few people who might have improved the team. Other signings would have been a knee jerk reaction.
As mentioned earlier, DR was on Sid and Dave. He gave a matter-of-fact summary of the situation. He did not paint an unrealistic picture, sugar coat their losses, or glorify their signings.
He spoke well of PMB and SRV and expressed optimism getting them signed. He spoke about Pouliot taking a turn with the Wild in the fall and also of Gilles making the step that Shephard did. His comment about not giving Rolston the fourth year is the potential Cap problem. And, he felt the Wild would be in the top ten payrolls this year.
The only thing that surprised me is that he spoke of Demitra as Pavol as already gone.
My opinion is similar to GreenStars in the he is open and upfront with his comments.
I think you can find decisions he has made that if revisited with hindsight would be different and hence subject to criticism.
But, all-in-all, DR is a good GM, you can find better but you can find way worse ones too.
The Twins have had stable management forever and it is one of their strengths. I think that will come to be a Wild strength too and so I hope he remains here.
I think the Wild has replaced their losses … maybe by committee, and changed the skills a little of the team a little bit.
So, there were only a few people who might have improved the team. Other signings would have been a knee jerk reaction.
From my last post, I specifically mean this year.
ps - as much as we all wanted a top line center, maybe it is time to leave slots for Pouliot and Gilles. How will they develop without?
As mentioned earlier, DR was on Sid and Dave. He gave a matter-of-fact summary of the situation. He did not paint an unrealistic picture, sugar coat their losses, or glorify their signings.
Yes, DR gave a good accounting of himself during a hard hitting interview from a trout stream.
The Twins have had stable management forever and it is one of their strengths.
I must have missed all those World Series apperances since 1991.
ps - as much as we all wanted a top line center, maybe it is time to leave slots for Pouliot and Gilles. How will they develop without?
When players get hurt.
Could Jesse Schultz be converted from RW to Center? If he could, you never know…?
I was checking out this Craig Weller to see what I could find and I found this
because this is a contract year for benny, he has to get a chance, IMHO. It would be irresponsible to resign him without any big league expr. and if we don’t give it a go, i’m guessing we will get nothing for him in the open market.
I must have missed all those World Series apperances since 1991.
they did make 4 playoff apperances since then in a league where over half don’t make the playoff like the nhl. and they were one hanging curve ball from the series the year anaheim won it.
I guess you can say I know what I am talking about Beaver. I told everyone the Wild would get a right handed shot to play with Boogy. I said George Larouqe, but looking at the you tube clip you have shared it looks like its not George its Craig Weller instead.
I have always said you are a genius Good Old Wally. We have no doubt had our differences but I have not changed my mind on your knowledge
- GreenStar is right, by and large the Twins have been successful over the past 20 years. However, by that logic Glen Mason should still be Gopher football coach.
- The go between of GoW and Beaver reminds me of Sid and Dave interviewing DR.
GreenStar is right, by and large the Twins have been successful over the past 20 years. However, by that logic Glen Mason should still be Gopher football coach.
there are different measures of success in different sports.
i’m not trying to justify anyone’s existence. Just pointing out that only 4 teams of 16 make the playoffs and ignoring that fact isn’t fair.
bowl games are a popularity contest except for the BCS bowls which the gophers haven’t participated in. I believe that mason had hit a wall with the football program. couple that with some monumental collapses in games, led to his demise.
Hahahahahhahahahah…. Here we go again. Another year of doing NOTHING!!!
Hey Russo…
So, this is hypothetical, but bear with me - What happens to the ping pong table if both PMB & SRV are gone after this next year?
Or - does DR have them do a ping pong to the death to see who gets the multi year deal?
Just some ideas for a fun summer story.
Thanks.
Good Old Wally is out doing some hard labor. I am jack hammering my steps. Good old Wally is doing a major remodel in his Edina home. I am blaring 93x and taking out any anger I may have on the concrete. I am taking a break now. Mike
I may suggest you take your anger out on some concrete. DR has done what he can. Good Old Wally is satisfied, and you could be too Michael !
Some thought on the Twins by Good Old Wally.
Mike, if you want to vent some anger go after Carl Pohlads sons. They are running the show. Good Old Wally has some inside information on that.
How can the fans sit back and not savage the Pohlads. It has happened every year for a while. The Twins perform well during the regular season until the stretch and they run out of gas, and the Pohlads do nothing to help the team on the field.
The team has a great coach, players that work hard, but team ownership that does not do what it takes. All Good Old Wally asks for is the best you can do within reason- The Pohlads are making too much money on the team and getting a new stadium to boot.
How would you like to be fan of a team like the Twins Michael ?
How can the fans sit back and not savage the Pohlads. It has happened every year for a while. The Twins perform well during the regular season until the stretch and they run out of gas, and the Pohlads do nothing to help the team on the field.
How can the fans sit back and not savage DR. It has happened every year for a while. THe Wild perform well during the regular season until the stretch run and they run out of gas, and DR does nothing to help the team on the ice.
I’m with you WRT…watch out B-B-B-Benny. Jesse’s on your tail.
Baseball doesn’t have a salary cap, right? So not spending money in that situation is different than not spending money in hockey (over the cap, that is).
There seem to be an awful lof of Dougie Ballgame apologists in Russoville, which is fine, I just don’t understand it. Not signing any impact free agents is one thing, still need to get the player to sign on the dotted line, but to change philosophies 4 times in 8 years is a bit much and to STILL not have addressed the center position going into the 08-09 season is boderline criminal. We do realize that we have 1 legitimate center on the roster going into the year. Shepp looks like he could be fine, as much as you want your #2 center to be a 2nd yr, 20-yr-old kid, but Belanger was AWOL after Hallowween last year and who the hell knows what the deal is with B-B-Benny. Will anyone here be surprised if he doesn’t even earn a spot out of camp? Sounds like he is being given a spot from Ballgame so we can go full circle with the “want to see if the kids can play” mantra. Sorry folks, but some of this reeks of what transpired in Cowtown that eventually led to Ballgame clearing out his rolodex and turning in his “Flames are #1″ foam finger.
kj- The Twins ownership just flat out stinks. They are not responsible owners. There goal is not to win a championship. KJ- Have you ever heard and of the Twins brass utter the words our goal is to win the championship ?
Let me explain…
The Twins have been making a good profit which was verified last year
In No way do Pohlads (Sons of Carl) spend money that reflects the best that they can do…..
DR and the Wild given there circumstances with a new organizatiion do the best that they can do within reason- Good Old Wally belives that - I think that the Wild can win a championship with this 08-09 roster KJ…. THE TWINS STINK
You could mention to KJ the fact that the Twins are clerly in a position to make a run for it and still nobody expects the sons of Carl to pull the trigger on anything
Have you ever heard and of the Twins brass utter the words our goal is to win the championship ?
“Stanley” and/or “Cup” never came up when Sid and Dave chatted with Doug Smugborough live from a trout stream today.
“I think that the Wild can win a championship with this 08-09 roster KJ”
GoW, did that jack hammer shake something loose? Ahhhh, yes it did. Your common sense is laying on the ground next to the jack hammer.
kj: Converting Jesse Schultz from RW to C is really not that far-fetched. He’s been in pro hockey for 5 + years, played in juniors in Kelowna, and has been on a championship team in the AHL. He’s 6-foot-1, 190 lbs., and would add size to a position where we could use a body. In addition, he’d be happy playing here with his cousin (hey, family is important.)
Just thinkin’ of when DR tells us, “We’re out of options right now. Sorry, fans.”
Just thinkin’ of when DR tells us, “We’re out of options right now. Sorry, fans.”
Will that come before or after DR trades for someone that JL has either never heard of or hates?*
* I turn the hate off when a quality C is signed.
6GS: You mean the second coming of any of the following:
Randy Robitaille
Alexander Daigle
Dom Moore
Adam Hall
Bill Muckalt
Hnat Domenchelli
…need I say more?
WRT: for a 7 year expansion franchise, that is a heck of a list!
GoW (and his ever-present sidekick the Beav):
You are kidding, right? You’re checking to see if I’ll take the bait, right?
Do you think for ONE SECOND that your Minnesota Wild has not been as or more profitable than the Twins over the past 8 years? I suspect Mr. Naegle will not go to Boca on his Social Security checks.
The management of BOTH teams are culpable for mismanagement. The Twins are the big spending team’s farm system. They find talent, turn them into stars and use them until they want a BIG raise and then unload them. They alway try to roll the dice with unproven players and bargain basement FAs to surround a ‘core’ group of talent.
That description of the Twins applies to the Wild except for one key fact:
Their only ‘true’ big name talent is still here…waiting to be traded like the Santana he is…
True, if DR picks up Morrison or (gasp, can Eklund be onto something) O’Sullivan I will give him kudos. Like I did for the Miettinen signing.
But for every good management decision, there seems to be two or three bad ones over the years.
And, as far as not being prudent to add to the team via FAs in the early years, I for the most part agree.
However, trotting out crap free agents (Daigle, White, Wallin, Westrum, Henry…) and the rest of the ‘kids that they needed to see’ after the lockout is what really started me to question DRs ability AND honesty.
Especially when he said (after year one of UFA - ‘for not playing’) year 2 after the lockout was the big year for talent and…well, you know the rest.
Green*…before you rip me for being inaccurate, yes I know Westrum and Wallin were acquired by trade. I know Alex Henry was obtained via waivers.
yes I know Westrum and Wallin were acquired by trade.
And that d-man is still in the NHL while the minor league system has produced nothing but Reitz.
bfw: thanks for the suggestion, we went and saw Get Smart. Very well done and funny, Steve is one of my favorite actors, I miss him on the Daily Show.
WATX: the Mr is glad you like him. I happen to think he’s snazy as well. Good luck on the new car hunt.
Just flipped my Wild calendar to July and the player of the month is Kim Johnsson - anyone else think the Wild did this on purpose to remind fans that UFAs are overrated?
GoW, I will be a Twins apologist too.
It does not bother me a bit that the owners make a profit on the Wild and the Twins too. In fact, I am extremely glad for it.
Whenever a team fails to make a profit, you have a Seattle Sonic situation.
The model here is to give the teams a budget, give them a management team you are comfortable with, and let them run the operation.
Everyone forgets that the Twins have a market that is infinitesimal compared to the Yankees. No team in baseball except the biggest ten markets can spend with the teams with the Yankees.
So, it would be seldom that it would be smart for the Twins to spend their money that way. They are better off spending at the minor league level and making smart trades with their developed assets.
Because of the market size, the Yankees do not only absorb the big contracts even with the adverse publicity of say an ARod (possibly with hot pants) on their roster, they profit directly from it because it creates more fan interest and higher viewership on their TV contract and merchandise that is not share equally across the league.
band - glad you liked it. Carrel is hysterical. 40 yr old Virgin n Anchorman are a couple of faves.
Word on the wild.com message board is that we are the front runner for Morrison. And we are also trying to work up a trade or something for Patrick O’Sullivan! How would that be for having no depth at center!!! That would be amazing! Haha
RUSSO!!! WE NEED YOU TO FIND OUT SOME INFO ON WHAT I JUST POSTED ABOVE!!! PLEASE!!!
Rumor has it the Wild is clearing space at the X for the Stanley Cup…Detroit said they would bring it by when they win it again next year. Seriously, someone needs to take notice of how Detroit is running their system; we clearly are not.
Crazy Food
Stop whining. During the whole last, fans were whining about how bad our Houston team was and its not place to develop a prospect since its a crappy team. Well, DR just signed a solid contributer and a solid goalie. With a better team in Houston, prospects will most likely have less pressure on their shoulders and focus on improving themselves
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