The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Winnipeg's long shot return to the NHL has some local hockey buffs dreaming what once seemed like the impossible dream. The owner of an undisclosed U.S.-based franchise recently contacted Winnipeg Deputy Mayor Dan Vandal to gauge how serious the Manitoba capital is about welcoming back the big league. That's given new hope to fans in Flin Flon and across the province who remain disheartened by the 1996 departure of the Winnipeg Jets to Phoenix. "I'd love to see the Jets come back," says Jason Mandes, a rec league hockey player and rabid hockey fan. "If Winnipeg can afford to keep them, I'm all for it." Mandes believes bringing the highest level of hockey back to Manitoba would be a very positive development for the province and Canada. "The Winnipeg Jets fans, they loved their team," he says. "You like to see as many Canadian teams as possible. People actually care about their teams here." In Mandes' view, it's ridiculous that non-traditional hockey markets in the U.S., such as Tampa Bay, Florida and Atlanta, Georgia, have NHL teams while Winnipeg does not. "It's depressing to see all these non-hockey towns keep getting teams," he says. Flin Flon City Councillor Tom Therien, who held season tickets for the Jets in their first season back in 1979-80, spoke along those same lines. "It would be great to have the NHL back in Winnipeg," he says. "It was nice when it was there, it would be nice again. I think the NHL has to get back to some realistic markets. Definitely, Winnipeg is a realistic market in terms of fan base." Therien has no doubt that he would occasionally travel south to see the NHL in Winnipeg, and expects other Flin Flonners would follow suit. One of them is Tanner Brough. While he wasn't a huge Jets fan during their 17 seasons, he is excited over the possibility Ñ slim as it may be Ñ of a Jets resurrection. "Since Winnipeg was the nearest place to watch the NHL, I appreciated the Jets," he says. "It's disappointing to see places have the NHL where the hockey crowd isn't there. They still sell Jets memorabilia in Winnipeg." See 'It's' P.# Con't from P.# Many Manitobans dismiss people who believe the NHL will return to Winnipeg as wishful thinkers. The obvious question that needs to be asked is, How realistic is it? Few people would like to see the NHL come back more than CFAR radio personality Jamie Smalley, but he's not getting his hopes up. "It's tough that they left, but it was kind of inevitable," says the former die hard Jets fan. "So it was disappointing but not totally surprising." Even if the NHL were to get its financial house in order (a salary cap or revenue-sharing program, for instance), Smalley isn't convinced the idea is feasible. "Winnipeg's pretty much too small," he says. "I'd like to see them return, but I think it's just too small." Therien doesn't completely dismiss the idea but suggests "it's a bit of a pipe dream right now." "There was a reason why the NHL left Winnipeg," he says. "The Canadian dollar still hasn't gotten that much better that it makes sense to have another Canadian-based team. But we'll see what happens." Mandes is a bit more optimistic, pointing out that Minnesota lost the NHL in 1993 only to see it return seven years later to an outstanding reception. "That place is rocking every night," he says of the Xcel Energy Center, home to the Minnesota Wild. Like Minnesota, Winnipeg may just need a second chance with the NHL, in Mandes' view. "I just think it's weird that non-hockey markets in the States get teams and they can't draw a single person," he says. "The Jets, I know, could do good." The Winnipeg Jets skated over from the WHL to the NHL in 1979, where they remained until economics dictated a move in 1996 to sunny Arizona, where they became the Phoenix Coyotes. While their on-ice success was limited, the Jets found their way into the hearts of countless hockey fans across the province. More information about the Jets and efforts to bring the NHL back to Winnipeg may be viewed online at www.jetsowner.com
