What NHL Team Moved to Winnipeg?

On May 31, 1996, the NHL announced that the Winnipeg Jets would be sold and relocated to Phoenix to become the Coyotes.

The Atlanta Thrashers

The Atlanta Thrashers were an NHL team that was based in Atlanta, Georgia. The Thrashers began playing in the 1999-2000 NHL season. On May 31, 2011, the NHL announced that the Atlanta Thrashers had been sold to a group led by True North Sports & Entertainment, which then moved the team to Winnipeg, Manitoba, and renamed them the Winnipeg Jets.

The team’s history

The Atlanta Thrashers were an American professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta, Georgia. They were members of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Thrashers began play during the 1999–2000 NHL season. In their 12-year history, the team had two captains, three head coaches, and failed to make the Stanley Cup playoffs twice. The Thrashers drafted Marc Savard, Dany Heatley, and Ilya Kovalchuk during their time in Atlanta; all three would later become NHL All-Stars. The franchise also acquired many players that would become fan favorites, such as Darren Turcotte, Patrik Stefan, and Johan Hedberg.

The Thrashers played their home games at Philips Arena in downtown Atlanta. Philips Arena was owned by the Atlanta Spirit LLC group led by Bruce Levenson and Steve Belkin. The team was founded in 1997 by a group who purchased the NHL’s approval to form an expansion franchise in Atlanta for $130 million ($170 million today). At the time this made them only the second NHL franchise south of Washington, D.C., since Nashville was added four years earlier as part of an expansion package that included Ottawa and Tampa Bay. Chris McCarthy was named president of the team that same year on June 19; don Waddell, who previously served as general manager of both the Winnipeg Jets and Carolina Hurricanes, was named CEO and general manager on August 5. McCarthy named former Montreal Canadiens head coach Pierre Roy as his first head coach on August 28.

The team’s move to Winnipeg

In May 2011, it was announced that the Atlanta Thrashers would be sold to True North Sports & Entertainment, who then relocated the team to Winnipeg, Manitoba, becoming the Winnipeg Jets. This made the Winnipeg Jets the seventh NHL franchise to relocate since 1992, and the first since the 2005–06 NHL season.

The Winnipeg Jets

The NHL Jets were originally the Atlanta Thrashers, but in 2011, the team was relocated to Winnipeg, which is where they get their name from. The Jets are now one of the most popular teams in the NHL. In addition to their on-ice success, the Jets are also known for their incredible fan support.

The team’s history

The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League (NHL). The team is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment and plays its home games at Bell MTS Place.

The Jets began play as the Atlanta Thrashers in the 1999–2000 NHL season. True North Sports & Entertainment then purchased the team in May 2011 and relocated it to Winnipeg prior to the 2011–12 NHL season. The Jets have reached the Stanley Cup Playoffs once since relocating, qualifying for the playoffs in 2018.

The team’s move to Winnipeg

In May 1996, the team was sold to a group of Detroit businessmen led by Steve Constantine for $110 million. The group intended to move the team to the United States, but NHL obstruction stopped the sale and forced a re-auction of the team. In June 1996, True North Sports & Entertainment ( TNSE) won an auction held by the NHL with a bid of $170 million, which was $60 million more than Constantine’s group had offered. This sequence of events set in motion a chain of events that led to the franchise’s relocation to Winnipeg.

On July 22, 1996, at an NHL Board of Governors meeting in Boston, TNSE was officially awarded an NHL expansion franchise for Winnipeg. The Jets took their name from Manitoba’s original WHA/NHL team, which in turn had been named after the Royal Canadian Air Force’s No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron based at CFB Portage la Prairie. The Jets began play as part of the NHL’s 27th season in 1999–2000.

The Impact of the Move

On May 31, 2011, it was announced that the Atlanta Thrashers would be sold and relocated to Winnipeg, to become the new Winnipeg Jets. This relocation had a huge impact on the city of Winnipeg, the NHL, and the sport of hockey altogether.

On the fans

On the fans, the move had a significant but mixed impact. For many of the Jets’ fans in Canada, the team’s departure was devastating. Winnipeg had been without an NHL team for nearly two decades, and many felt that the Jets were finally beginning to turn things around. The team had made the playoffs in three of the last four seasons and had developed a strong core of young players, including future Hall-of-Famer Teemu Selanne.

On the city

On the city, the impact is both economic and cultural. According to the Canadian Encyclopedia, the move gave the city its first major professional sports team in over a decade, and brought in an influx of tourism dollars. The city also had to build a new arena, the MTS Centre, to accommodate the team.

On the NHL

NHL team moves are rare, but they occasionally happen. The most recent move was in 2011, when the Atlanta Thrashers became the Winnipeg Jets. Prior to that, the last NHL team move was in 1997, when the Quebec Nordiques became the Colorado Avalanche.

The impact of an NHL team move can be significant. For example, when the Winnipeg Jets returned to the NHL in 2011, it brought a lot of excitement to the city of Winnipeg and Canada as a whole. Hockey is Canada’s national sport, so having an NHL team back in Winnipeg was a big deal. The city of Winnipeg and the province of Manitoba supported the Jets with sellout crowds at every home game.

The return of the Jets also had a positive impact on the local economy. According to a study conducted by Manitoba Business News, the Jets generated $191 million in economic activity for Manitoba during their first season back in the NHL. This included $85 million in spending by fans on things like hotels, restaurants, and transportation.

Overall, the return of the Winnipeg Jets has been a positive experience for everyone involved. The city of Winnipeg has embraced its NHL team and shown its support through attendance at games and spending at local businesses.