ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Minnesota Wilds 14-year existence has revolved mostly about mediocrity. The narrative has finally taken a turn for the better.There is more confidence. There are fewer concerns. Advancing deep into the playoffs and, dare that ultimate goal be voiced, challenging for the Stanley Cup have trumped past hopes of simply playing a few bonus games in April.Every year you feel good about your team, but its just a little different. You feel like theres unfinished business, owner Craig Leipold said.Last season was far from smooth. The Wild lost their sixth straight game on New Years Eve. Coach Mike Yeo was on tenuous footing with an expiring contract, though Leipold said in a recent interview he really wasnt on the bubble.But despite foot injuries to Mikko Koivu and Zach Parise that kept them out for a total of 32 games, the Wild were at their best when they were the most vulnerable. The biggest health problem was between the pipes, where four different goalies were called on to start 19 or more games. After Darcy Kuemper picked up the slack for Josh Harding, who had taken over for Niklas Backstrom, Ilya Bryzgalov was there down the stretch to fill in for Kuemper.So here they are with every key player back from the group that upset Central Division champion Colorado in the Western Conference quarterfinals and reached the second round for just the second time in franchise history. Theres also an important addition in left wing Thomas Vanek.Mikael Granlund, who will centre the first line with Parise and Jason Pominville, now has a full year of NHL experience. Two other 22-year-old forwards, Charlie Coyle and Nino Niederreiter, combined for 76 points last season. The speed of third-line centre Erik Haula, who is 23, was a revelation in the post-season with four goals in 13 games. Parise, Pominville, Vanek, Koivu, Matt Cooke and ironman defenceman Ryan Suter form a proven core of veterans.The pieces are in place. Yeo has a new deal. Now its up to them to fulfil that potential.Id have a hard time listing the teams that I know are better than we are, Leipold said. Theres probably a couple of them, but if we have a couple of our players step up like we hope we will this year that gap is going to get narrower.Here are some key nuggets to know about the Wild this season:GOAL SETTING: Harding is out indefinitely with a broken foot, leaving Backstrom and Kuemper to compete for time in the net. This is unquestionably the biggest issue to resolve, likely the hinge between status quo and a step forward in the playoffs. Thats one reason why Bryzgalov was invited to training camp on a tryout contract and the Wild have not ruled out keeping three goalies on the roster. I know its repetitive, but were just going to kind of evaluate every day, Yeo said. So I dont want to go in and say one guys got the edge over another right now.WINGMAN: The emergence of Granlund and Haula allowed the Wild to slide Coyle over to right wing, where hell start the season on a second line with Koivu and Vanek. Yeo declined to declare the move permanent, but the 6-foot-3, 220-pound Coyle has the presence and skills to make that a long-term fit if hes not needed again as a fill-in at centre.DUMBA ON Defence? Theres a top-six opening on defence, and prospects Matt Dumba and Christian Folin have been getting a long look during training camp. Dumba was the teams first-round draft pick in 2012. Nate Prosser was brought back this week via waiver claim for more depth.GRAND CENTRAL: The Wild pushed for realignment as much as any team in the league, desiring more road games in their own time zone to increase television ratings and more regional rivalries in their division to enhance ticket sales. In a classic be-careful-what-you-wish-for case, the Wild have found themselves in a brutally difficult division. They went 14-12-3 against the Central in 2013-14 and despite matching the second-highest point total in franchise history finished in fourth place. Only two of the 14 teams that missed the 2014 playoffs came from the Central, Nashville and Winnipeg.FAMILIAR FOE: The Wilds opener is at home against the Avalanche on Oct. 9 in a reprise of that epic seven-game series, and theres a rematch two days later in Denver. Best Replica Yeezy Website . The 26-year-old Sobotka injured his left leg playing for the St. Louis Blues in a 3-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. The Blues said he would not recover from the injury in time for the Olympic tournament. Cheap Air Max 90 China .1 Sam Stosur will meet Germanys second-ranked player Andrea Petkovic in the opening match of the Fed Cup World Group semifinal. http://www.fakeyeezyscheap.com/. - The Florida Panthers are getting some Army training to finish off their preparations for the season. Cheap Fake Jordan 1 . The 28-year-old lefty made his MLB debut in 2013, making 10 starts and going 2-5 with 4.05 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Albers was named the Twins organizations minor league pitcher of the year for 2013. Cheap Vapormax China . Bayern led second-place Leverkusen by 10 points with a game in hand, while Dortmund was another four points off the pace. Freiburg midfielder Felix Klaus scored in the last minute as his side twice came from behind to climb provisionally out of the relegation zone.MONACO, Monaco - Thomas Bach never thought it would be this easy. In rapid fashion and without a single vote against or even an abstention, the International Olympic Committee on Monday overwhelmingly approved its presidents 40-point reform package — the biggest shake-up of the organization in decades. Even in my wildest dreams I would not have expected this, Bach said after the delegates unanimously backed his plans for a more affordable bidding system, creation of an Olympic television channel and a more flexible sports program. That it would go this way was a very, very positive surprise. Bach moved decisively since his election in September 2013 to put his stamp on the presidency and rally support for his Olympic Agenda 2020 reforms, marking the most sweeping changes since the Salt Lake City bid scandal in 1999. A vote scheduled to take place over 1 1/2 days was wrapped up in just one day. The only thing that didnt pass unanimously was a suggestion for a coffee break I hope in 20 years I can look back to this day with satisfaction and happiness and maybe a little bit of relief, Bach said. Among other measures approved was the rewording of the IOCs non-discrimination policy to include sexual orientation — a move that followed the controversy over Russias law against gay propaganda ahead of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. The IOC abolished the cap of 28 sports for the Summer Games to move to an events-based system that would allow new competitions to come in, while keeping to about 10,500 athletes and 310 medal events. Host cities will also be allowed to propose the inclusion of one or more additional events for their games. The new rules clear the way for Tokyo organizers to request that baseball and softball be included in the 2020 Games. Both sports, dropped after the 2008 Beijing Games, are highly popular in Japan. Today, there is excitement circulating around the baseball and softball world and there is great hope that our athletes will now have a real opportunity ... to play for their country, aiming to win an Olympic gold medal, said Riccardo Fraccari, president of the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Other sports like squash and karate are also hopeful of joining the Tokyo program. In addition, new disciplines and evennts within existing sports could also be considered.dddddddddddd Some events may need to be dropped to make room for new ones. This is a major breakthrough, senior Canadian member Dick Pound said. We were at a dead-end situation with 28 sports. This provides the flexibility we need. The new bidding process, meanwhile, is aimed at making the system cheaper and more flexible to attract future candidates — including the option of holding events outside the host city or country. The votes came at a time when many countries have been scared off by the costs of hosting the Olympics, including the reported $51 billion associated with the Sochi Games. Several cities withdrew from the bidding for the 2022 Winter Olympics, leaving only Beijing and Almaty, Kazakhstan, in the running. The new system makes the process more of an invitation and allows prospective candidates to discuss their plans in advance with the IOC to tailor games to their own needs. In the most radical change, the reforms open the door to possible joint bids by cities, neighbouring countries or regions. Bach said joint bids or events held in different countries would be allowed only in exceptional cases. The IOC backed the launch of a digital TV channel — possibly as early as next year — to promote Olympic sports between the games and engage with young viewers. The channel will feature material from the IOCs archives, transmit some international sports competitions and offer a promotional platform for bid cities. The IOC said the channel — to be run by the Madrid-based Olympic Broadcasting Services — will cost $600 million to operate over the first seven years, with the goal of breaking even in the first decade. The new Principle 6 clause says the Olympics should be free of discrimination of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Former Olympic diving gold medallist Greg Louganis said the new wording removes all doubt about the interpretation of the clause. Todays move will make it clear about open hearts and open minds in the spirit of the Olympic Games, he said. ___ Follow Stephen Wilson on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stevewilsonap ' ' '