May 9, 2003 - One of the people watching last night's game with keen interest was Doug Johnson, the Publisher of "Let's Play Hockey" and Morning Edition's expert guide to this Wild playoff run. That is Doug Johnson who is the publisher of "Let's Play Hockey." Quite a few Wild fans are already in line for a limited number of tickets for the series against Anaheim which will go on sale at noon today. The series starts tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
May 9, 2003 -
May 8, 2003 - The Minnesota Legislature has just 12 days to come up with a budget for the next biennium. Lawmakers are required by law to adjourn the session by May 19th, but House Republicans and Senate DFLers are still far apart in their plans to deal with a projected 4.2 billion dollar shortfall. Both sides have used recent polls to bolster their positions on taxes and spending. Joining us now with his perspective of what's going on is Minnesota's governor, Tim Pawlenty. That is Governor Tim Pawlenty. To get all the background you need about to ongoing debate at the Capitol, go to the Session 2003 page of our web site, Minnesota Public Radio dot org.
May 7, 2003 - The Minnesota Wild will try to get a win at home tonight (WEDNESDAY) against the Vancouver Canucks in game 6 of their Stanley Cup playoff series. The Wild need to win to stay alive, but they haven't had much luck at home during the playoffs. They lost two home games to the Avalanche in the first round of the series, and another two at home to the Canucks. Doug Johnson is the Publisher of Let's Play Hockey.
May 7, 2003 -
May 6, 2003 - A new Minnesota Public Radio-St. Paul Pioneer Press poll finds about half of those polled think Governor Pawlenty is doing a good or excellent job. That's about the same as in a February poll by the same organizations. But the number of people rating his performance "poor" more than doubled, rising from 8 to 17 percent. Craig Grau is a political science professor at the University of Minnesota-Duluth, and he's on the line now. That is Craig Grau, a political science professor at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
May 6, 2003 -
May 6, 2003 - Minneapolis will give out its Heritage Preservation Awards this month, and one will be presented to Donna Ellringer. Ellringer is a community activist in the Phillips neighborhood, and has been working for years to improve the city's poorest area. Now she and her husband have won an award for preserving their home in that neighborhood. And just as they've received the award, they're thinking of pulling up stakes. Donna Ellringer joins us now. That is Minneapolis community activist Donna Ellringer, the winner of a Heritage Preservation Award.
May 5, 2003 -
May 2, 2003 - For the seventh straight year the Minnesota Timberwolves have lost in the first round of the NBA layoffs. Minnesota's season ended last night in Los Angeles when they lost to the Lakers 101 to 85 in Game Six of their best of seven series. Despite the early exit in the playoffs, this was Minneota's best season ever, setting a franchise record for wins with the fourth-best record in the league. Joining us now is Brit Robson who covers the Timberwolves for City Pages. --At the beginning of the season you predicted the Wolves would make the playoffs and lose in the first round. Did anything about this year surprise you? --Wolves fans are getting tired of "moral victories" but should they take solace in the fact that the Wolves beat the Lakers in L.A. and took a two games to one lead at one point in the series? --Did the series with the Lakers expose any glaring weaknesses in the Timberwolves? --Will the team be able to do much in the off season to improve the team? --As he has ever year, Kevin Garnett showed significant improvement in his play this year. Can he get any better? --Is Garnett going to stay with the Wolves after his contract expires?