Wild Winter Classic uniform rich with Minnesota hockey history

The Minnesota Wild will take the ice for the 2022 Winter Classic in uniforms rich in hockey and Twin Cities history.

The uniforms, unveiled at the Minnesota State Fair on Saturday, are heavy on throwback details and regional references, supremely fit for the State of Hockey.
The design was based on the St. Paul Saints uniforms from the 1930s and blended with the Wild's color palette. There were several iterations of the St. Paul Saints that played in amateur and professional leagues and they were inarguably instrumental in building Minnesota into a hockey powerhouse at all levels.
The Wild will host the St. Louis Blues in the 2022 NHL Winter Classic on Jan. 1. The outdoor game will be played at Target Field in Minneapolis, home of MLB's Minnesota Twins.
"I think what most of us know is that both cities are involved and obviously our main home is in St. Paul, but playing in the Twins stadium is pretty cool," said Wild captain Jared Spurgeon, who modeled the uniforms for the unveiling. "I think there's a little baseball feel to it as well, but they still have our Wild colors on there, so it's awesome."

For the crest, two stars on either side of the Minnesota state crest represent Gemini, the twins constellation, and the lettering of the two cities represent them coming together to form the state capital.
The pants feature a new vintage inspired State of Hockey mark inspired by the iconic diamond-shaped Grain Belt Beer sign,
which went dark
in the late 1990s, but was relit in 2017 after New Ulm-based August Schell Brewing Co. purchased it.
The canvas brown pants, gloves and elbow patches, and vintage white are a throwback to hockey's origins on the pond.
Felt was used for the cresting, names and numbers, and a narrowed yoke are all callbacks to the 1930s and 1940s hockey aesthetic.
The 2021 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic scheduled to be played between the Wild and Blues at Target Field was postponed Oct. 22, 2020 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus.
"Especially with last year, having it and then it was gone so fast, so now to put it back into the forefront right now and be excited for it, it's pretty special," Spurgeon said. "It's a cool day, a lot of events that go on with it. Just for players, ourselves, it's very exciting. The Stadium Series against Chicago (at TCF Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on Feb. 21, 2016) was awesome -- it turned out to be not too cold of a day, so it was awesome. Just the atmosphere that it brings, a different setting and bringing it back to your memories of playing as a kid outside, it's awesome."
NHL.com independent correspondent Jessi Pierce contributed to this report