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NHL Preview - Winnipeg Jets
South Eastern Division – The Winnipeg Jets
Although they haven’t entirely sorted out the geography yet, this winter will see the return of the NHL to Winnipeg after a 15-year absence.
Hockey in Canada is a national obsession and this season the ante has been cranked up a gear. When season tickets went on general sale earlier this summer, over 7,000 were sold in three days to priority customers. Another 6,000 were sold in just 17 minutes when they went on general sale. The waiting list had to be closed down after a further 8,000 people signed up in under two hours.
This sits in stark contrast to the rows of empty seats greeting the team every time the Atlanta Thrashers took to the ice last season. After joining the league in 1999 the Thrashers only made the playoffs once, and were swept 4-0 by the New York Rangers. According to reports in the last six years the team lost $160 million.
Out of the rumour that grew up as a result it became clear that plans were afoot to sell the team to a consortium intent on moving the Thrashers to Winnipeg. The formal announcement came May 31st, bring the Thrashers to an end and causing Atlanta to become the first city in the modern era to lose two NHL franchises.
Despite the clear support in Winnipeg, the franchise is moving into a city that has already been forced to give up its team, when the former Jets moved to Phoenix to become the Coyotes. So why should they expect anything different this time round?
The original Jets up sticks in the mid nineties as maintenance costs rose, and the exchange rate hit Canada hard. Forced to pay American wages on Canadian income, and with a small market to draw from, it became more profitable to move the team to a fresh hockey town (in Arizona) than leave it in a traditional Canadian market.
However with the fall of the Thrashers, and the Coyotes own financial struggles there appears to be a sense that the NHL is looking to reconnect with its Canadian roots. While there are success stories of team in hotter climes (Tampa Bay for example) the real passion for hockey further north gives a guaranteed income. There maybe not be the expansive potential markets, but there is also no risk of empty seats.
The new rules brought in over the last few years also will help give a team with the smallest building in the league a sporting chance.
The surviving team members who have relocated look in half decent shape. After keeping pace with the division leader for the first half of the season they fell away after the All Star Break. This time round a serious playoff push is hoped for.
A solid young core has been boosted by arrivals such as Eric Fuhr. A Manitoba native Fuhr put some decent numbers with the Washington Capitals. The spur of playing for his home team, and a season off the treatment table could see this as a good piece of business by the Jets.
Dustin Byfuglien (pronounced Bufflin, yes really) has all the attributes of a No1 defenseman, but like his goaltender behind him, Ondrej Pavelec, needs to find a way to do it consistently. Too much hot and cold from both players last year didn’t do Atlanta any favours, will the energy of the crowd bring out the best in them?
Its not all plain sailing. The pressure cooker of playing in Canada can prove too much. Patrick Roy, one of the best goaltenders of all time, said if he had not moved away from Montreal he wouldn’t of been able to achieve what he did. Toronto seem perpetually stuck with players hampered by the task of playing for the Maple Leafs. The Montreal Canadians lost all their home games during their brief playoff run this spring, and the city of Vancouver experienced mass rioting when the Canucks were felled in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.
The team will quickly learn that playing the game north of the border is and entirely different proposition to down in the South East. The team will however remain in that division for next season as the sale came too late for a league wide re-jig, this will instead happen and the end of this season.
Warning signs loom large over this new beginning with the ghost of past Atlanta teams and the old Jets hanging around. The visit of the Coyotes to Winnipeg should be an interesting watch. But for now the sheer enthusiasm for Hockey in Canada seems to have given the whole league a buzz. Lets hope its something to build on rather than a high water mark.
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4-5 |
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1-4 |
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4-4 |
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| 11th March 2006 19:00 | ||
2-4 |
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| 11th March 2006 19:00 | ||
| Club | GP | W | L | OL | GF | GA | Pts |
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5-8 |
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| 19th March 2006 19:00 | ||
5-1 |
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4-1 |
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5-2 |
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| 19th March 2006 19:00 | ||
3-7 |
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| 19th March 2006 19:00 | ||
1-1 |
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| 19th March 2006 19:00 | ||
| Club | GP | W | L | OL | GF | GA | Pts |
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- Adam Walker
- Alex Birch
- Andy Pierce
- Chris Gent
- Christopher Beal
- Craig Simpson
- Dave Simms
- Elliott Stanley
- Gareth Chalmers
- James Broughton
- James Gordon
- Katy Madgwick
- Luke Catterson
- Mark Briggs
- Mark Duell
- Mat Young
- Patrick Smyth
- Promotion
- Russ Morrell
- Seanna Murdock
- Stephen Dowson
- Stewart Roberts
- Tom Forster
- Vicki Smart
- William Lyon
