Back in 1996, I was merely a casual follower of the NHL. Sure, I had watched some games here and there. But I generally didn't watch very many games until a few years later. That same year, the Winnipeg Jets sadly flew out of the provincial capital of Manitoba to the dry desert of Phoenix, Arizona, and the team was renamed the Phoenix Coyotes.
Turn the clock ahead to 2011. The Coyotes are now in control by the National Hockey League, and there was a strong possibility that True North Sports & Entertainment, an ownership group based out of Winnipeg, was interested in bringing the franchise back to where it belongs. But instead, Chicago-based businessman Matthew Hulsizer expressed interest in buying the team, and the city of Glendale (where the Coyotes play their home games) pitched in $25 million to keep the team there through at least the 2011-12 season. And now the Coyotes are looking for new ownership--again--as Hulsizer pulled himself out of the running to buy the team.
But it doesn't matter for Winnipeg now. Once Glendale was able to get their ducks in a row in keeping the Coyotes in town, TNS&E shifted their focus to Atlanta, as the Thrashers' ownership group was fixing to sell off the team to the highest bidder. The Thrashers had historically been abysmal, only making one playoff appearance in their franchise history, and their fan support was next to nothing in recent years, which may have been one of those factors into why Atlanta Spirit wanted to unload the team.
On May 19, an article from the Toronto Globe & Mail reported that Atlanta Spirit and True North had come to a purchase agreement which opened the door for relocation of the team to Winnipeg. Despite the reports being premature, Jets fans flocked by the thousands to Portage and Main, a popular gathering area in downtown Winnipeg, to celebrate the return of their team on that night. Five days later, True North and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman were in Winnipeg to announce the transaction had officially been completed. The relocation of the Thrashers to Winnipeg was approved by the NHL's Board of Governors on June 21.
Ever since the lockout wiped out the 2004-05 NHL season, I have pulled for Winnipeg to get a team again because of how much fans in the city pushed for having another team and hoping it would work out the second time around. What helped the city of Winnipeg this time is they had a new building, the MTS Centre, which replaced the outdated Winnipeg Arena (which was the original home of the Jets) that has since been demolished.
Exhale, Manitoba. The Jets are flying again. And I firmly believe they will be in Winnipeg to stay this time.
Image credit: CBC.ca
