NHL Returns To Winnipeg

In 1996, the people of Winnipeg were devastated as economic difficulties drove the Jets out of the freezing city. However with financial losses of close to 130 million dollars over the past five years and ongoing ownership issues looming in Atlanta, the National Hockey League has approved a deal that would relocate the Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg for the upcoming 2011-2012 season.

When the Winnipeg Jets played their final playoff game on April 28, 1996, few doubted that this hockey-fixated city would go a lengthy fifteen years without an NHL franchise. However, with the NHL looking to compete with the other major American sports and boost its profile in the United States, moving teams from Canada to America in short terms, was their only option.

Since being granted an expansion team in 1999, the Atlanta Thrashers have failed dreadfully to meet the expectations handed to them by the National Hockey League. Having only been to the Stanley Cup playoffs just once in their eleven-year history, which resulted in a quarterfinal four game sweep at the hands of the New York Rangers, the Thrashers have been unsuccessful in selling the game in Georgia.

In early May, Truth North Sports and Entertainment, which is headed by Mark Chipman and David Thomson, received the blessing from the National Hockey League to purchase the Atlanta Thrashers from the Atlanta Spirit Company. They officially bought the Atlanta Thrashers organization on May 31, 2011. For the past two years, Chipman and Thomson have been avidly trying to purchase the Phoenix Coyotes, as they have dealt with their own ownership dilemma.True North Sports and Entertainment owns the MTS Centre, which will be the home of the new franchise in Winnipeg.

With hockey returning to Winnipeg, there are some major struggles to be dealt with. Commissioner Gary Bettman has already made it clear that the divisions from this past season will stay intact for the upcoming season meaning Winnipeg will slot into the Southeast Division. This creates a massive conflict as Winnipeg will be forced to travel about 1200 miles a total of nine times. Luckily after the 2011-2012 season, the divisions and conferences will be reconstructed.

An NHL team in Winnipeg will mark the seventh Canadian team in the league and will surely thrive for the foreseeable future.