The Minnesota Wild have sold more tickets and sold out more games than any other expansion team -- ever.

North Stars' last five seasons
Yr.	GP	Total	Avg.	Capacity
'93	41	556,937	13,910	91.1
'92	40	538,860	13,447	88.0
'91	40	313,522	7,838	51.3
'90	40	454,147	11,345	74.3
'89	40	391,787	9,795	64.1

Wild games at the Xcel Energy Center average 18,388 per game, and by season's end, the Wild will have had more that 750,000 fans and 41 sellouts.

In the end, that's great for the team's public relations and profitability, but what does it mean on the ice for the players?

"Every game here, honestly, has actually felt like a playoff game. Anytime you step out in front of a full house, it gets you excited," said defenseman Brad Bombardir, who can compare the atmosphere to his days in New Jersey with the Devils. "In New Jersey, it's a tough ticket to sell because there are so many athletic events out there. In Minnesota, it's not like that, and they love their hockey so much."

Goalie Jamie McLennan played in St. Louis, which is recognized as a great sports town -- and a place that shows great support for the Blues.

"It's very comparable. The reason being St. Louis is a sports city, and with hockey coming back to the Twin Cities, the atmosphere has been unbelievable, like nothing I've seen before in the league," McLennan said. "The fans are educated and know we're trying our hardest every night but sometimes come up short."

It's all about the bowls

Sure, Minnesota is a hockey-crazed state, thirsty for the NHL's return to the Twin Cities. That's a major reason the Wild sell out every game and have 15,500 season tickets sold and a 3,000-deep waiting list. But to sellout so many games and attract so many fans, there must be some good strategy behind it. And for the Wild, that strategy was to make all the seats attractive to people. And that meant offering good prices for the spots more often called "nosebleeds" and "cheap seats" more than just plain seats. There was no seat in the upper bowl of the Excel Energy Center priced higher than $26. In fact, 1,700 seats were available at $10 per seat. "It's easy to sell out the lower bowl, but tough to sell the upper bowl. That, and the passion of the fans made it possible," said Steve Griggs, Vice President of Customer Sales and Service for the Wild. Of those $10 seats 1,200 are held back as single-game tickets and for youth hockey groups. The other 500 are season tickets.

And the Wild have come up short 35 times this season -- 15 of those losses at home. For an expansion team, that's not too many losses, especially the home number. But it begs the question how the fans deal with losing.

"I'll give you an example," said McLennan in an effort to answer the question. "One game, we were playing New Jersey and were down 4-1 in the second. We killed off a big penalty, and we got a standing ovation. We're down 4-1 in the second and get an ovation for our effort?

"You don't see that in other buildings, and it makes us want to try harder. It definitely helps bring up the adrenaline level when you know you are playing in front of fans who are fired up."

At some point, for 750,000 people to want to keep coming back, the Wild will have to win. But because it's Minnesota, where hockey tends to rule the sporting landscape, the honeymoon should be longer than in Atlanta and Columbus, the other two most recent expansion teams.

"I think as long as they recognize the effort level and the commitment to winning, it will be a good relationship for a long time," McLennan said. "They recognize everyone is trying to build a championship team, and that it will take time."

Brian A. Shactman covers the NHL for ESPN.com. He can be reached at brian.shactman@espn.com.