Wild open Saturday against Avalanche

The Minnesota Wild will open the lockout-shortened season at home next weekend against Colorado.
The NHL released the 48-game schedules on Saturday night, one week before they begin. The Wild will host Dallas next Sunday and Nashville two days later before hitting the road.
The Wild will play 18 games against the Northwest Division — five against Calgary and Colorado and four against Edmonton and Vancouver. They’ll face the other 10 teams in the Western Conference three times each. They’ll also play nine sets of back-to-back games, because the season will only last 99 days. The Stanley Cup playoffs begin on May 1.
Training camp begins on Sunday morning, and the Wild will hold an open-to-the-public, free-of-charge intra-squad scrimmage at Xcel Energy Center on Wednesday night.