After 25 years as Xcel Energy Center, downtown St. Paul’s premier hockey venue will have a new name: Grand Casino Arena.
The 14-year naming rights partnership, announced in a news release Monday, will begin Sept. 3. The NHL’s Minnesota Wild and PWHL’s Frost use the arena as home ice, and it also hosts major concerts and events, including the state high school hockey tournament.
“Grand Casino Arena will serve as the anchor of a dynamic entertainment district that transforms downtown St. Paul,” Wild owner Craig Leipold said in a statement. “The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe has been a strong supporter of and investor in this city. We are thrilled for their partnership and support of the arena.”
The Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe opened Grand Casino Mille Lacs and Grand Casino Hinckley in the early 1990s. The band’s business arm, Mille Lacs Corporate Ventures (MLCV), has had a presence in downtown St. Paul for more than a decade. In 2013, it acquired the InterContinental St. Paul Riverfront and DoubleTree by Hilton, part of ongoing efforts to diversify tribal revenue beyond gaming.
“This is more than a name change — it’s a signal of where we’re headed as a business,” Ronda Weizenegger, chief executive officer of Grand Casino, said in a statement. “Grand Casino Arena represents the strength of tribal enterprise and our ongoing investment in Minnesota’s future.”
It’s the end of an era for the X, as fans have called the venue. The arena has been home to the Wild since its construction for the NHL expansion team’s first season in 2000. That was shortly after Xcel Energy formed from the merger of Northern States Power and two other companies.
St. Paul officials and the Wild asked the state for $50 million to help renovate the 25-year-old Xcel Energy Center. Lawmakers did not grant the request in the most recent legislative session. (Jerry Holt/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
The name change comes at a critical juncture for the facility and the neighborhood.
The Wild and city officials sought $50 million from the state for a $488 million arena renovation, though lawmakers did not grant the request during this year’s legislative session.
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