Wild ‘devastated’ by Pierce family tragedy, GM Guerin says

“It’s tough. We felt it after last game,” Marcus Foligno said. “You could see the look on a lot of people’s faces, just in shock. How we’re all feeling right now is devastated. You’re just thinking about Jessi, the kids and obviously her husband, the family, everyone that knew her and loved her. We’ll definitely miss her around the rink for sure.” 

Pierce was intensely proud of her family, often talking about the accomplishments of her children. When she and her husband started a family, she would sometimes cover a Wild practice with one of her young children on her hip, melding family and work into a modern-day package.

She was a fixture on the area’s sports scene, through her vibrant feed on X, her work as a co-host for the “Bardown Beauties” podcast about the Wild and her appearances on a Minnesota Vikings podcast.

Pierce would happily tell people about her journey to become an NHL writer, a dream she first articulated when she was 18.

“If you ever met her, you just feel the energy around her,” Wild captain Jared Spurgeon said. “Every time she was in here, she had a smile on her face, whether it’s talking about the game at hand or just youth sports.

“I remember when she would bring the kids into the dressing room and do an interview holding (her son). It’s very hard news to take.”

Pierce’s work on hockey appeared in countless publications, including USA Hockey, the Minnesota Hockey Journal, Massachusetts Hockey, The Athletic and the B1G Ice Hockey blog, which covered Big Ten ice hockey.

A proud graduate of Iowa State University, she covered multiple sports — in print and through video — during her four years there.

“Hopefully we can all carry on her legacy with the smile and passion for the game and the way she treated people,” Wild coach John Hynes said. “It’s tremendous to see the legacy that she left, and you see all the outpouring of support and the impact that she had not only professionally, but more important personally.

“Just pray for her and her family and everyone as well.”