Jets 1.0 legend Dale Hawerchuk never suited up for a game with the Coyotes. However the incredible records he achieved after being drafted 1st overall by Winnipeg in 1981, playing in the Smythe Division from 1981 to 1990, currently reside with the now defunct franchise in Arizona. Of course folks in Manitoba don’t need the official records to reflect their connection to the 1.0 team and the players from that era. And obviously the connection was so significant fans overwhelmingly wanted the Jets name back when the franchise returned in 2011 which is why True North went with it.
Photo Credit: Dave Minuk (Illegal Curve)
However, when we in the media are cross-referencing All-Time records the NHL currently views the Jets 2.0 franchise as an extension of the Thrashers which is why when you go to a site like Hockey Reference alongside Mark Scheifele, Josh Morrissey, Patrik Laine you’ll see names like Ilya Kovalchuk, Marian Hossa and Dany Heatley.
Similarly for the now defunct Coyotes team they’ve got Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Clayton Keller, Jeremy Roenick beside names like Thomas Steen, Paul Maclean, Teemu Selanne, Randy Carlyle and of course the aforementioned Dale Hawerchuk.
Personally, I’ve been able to mitigate this issue by listing All-Time records with a qualifier of “Jets 2.0 alone, Jets/Thrashers or Jets 1.0/Jets 2.0” but with the news that current owner of Arizona Alex Meruelo will not be pursuing reactivation of the franchise and with the Coyotes now in Utah, what happens to the old records?
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was asked about this and the possibility of returning them to the Jets 2.0 according to Sportsnet’s Eric Engels who tweeted this out:
“Asked if it’s possible original Winnipeg Jets history/records could be returned to the team, he called it an excellent question, but said it was too early to say.”
What do you think? Do you care? Share your thoughts here.
