The fans wanted it, the management wanted it and the in the end the players wanted it too as the Winnipeg Jets closed their season Saturday at home against the Tampa Bay Lightning. It was a special event with a lot of emotion amongst the fans and surely the management and players too but in the end it was the fans who defined so much of what made the inaugural season for the Winnipeg Jets remarkable.
Game Used Sticks for Sale
The fans started chanting many times but the best of all came early as the 300 level started the “Thank-You True North”. It was heard around the arena countless times during the game as well as in the halls the streets, bathrooms, merchandise shops and anywhere else a Jets’ fan was. For a small city such as Winnipeg the thank-you should be going the other way as approximately 100 million dollars was pulled out of the Winnipeg economy and into the True North coffers.
Guest 50/50 ticket drawer Jay Onrait
No matter what one thought of the game or the feelings about a season ending too soon, there is always the good news that it gets to happen again next year. As Gary Lawless, a local writer for the Winnipeg Free Press and broadcaster for TSN Radio 1290, so eloquently explained; the season is like closing up the cottage but knowing you get to do it all over again next year.
Before the game started there were some team awards to be handed out by GM Kevin Chevaldayoff. The team’s MVP was an obvious choice in Ondrej Pavelec. While I may disagree with it from my picks there would be far more who disagree with me than the choice of Pavelec. While the award was not a true ‘MVP’ award it was the McDiarmid Lumber Three Stars award and Pavelec had the most stars of any Jet on home ice with 12.
Jim Slater won the Staffmax Staffing & Recruiting Community Service Award for his outstanding effort in the community with his ‘Take Jim Slater to Work’ contest. Slater really did personify what it means to be a Jets player in Winnipeg, a blue-collar hard working town which loves it’s heroes but doesn’t care for the flash.
Finally it was the Dan Snyder Memorial Award, something the Jets have respectfully carried on from the team’s origins in Atlanta. This award is given to the Winnipeg Jets player who embodies perseverance, dedication and hard work without reward or recognition and this may have been another easy choice in Mark Stuart. Easily the most selfless of all Jets players, Stu led the team in blocked shots and missed shots. He stopped goals and made it easier for his mates to score more than him.
In the end the night belonged to Tampa as they found a way to win in the OT frame on Teddy Purcell’s hat trick goal. The story before the win was that of Steven Stamkos scoring his 60th on a great feed from St. Louis. There were mixed feelings about what the fans should do if this milestone event did happen, but the Jets fans did the right thing and gave Stamkos polite applause which turned into a standing ovation. Class through and through once again.
However, it was the fans that would come alive and almost will the Jets to score late in the game. With Pavelec pulled the fans stood on their feet for over two minutes and cheered and chanted “Go Jets go” at a deafening volume. It seemed to work as Jim Slater potted his second of the night with less then a minute to go to force the game into overtime.
It would be the last goal of the season but one that personified everything about the Jets and their season at home. The push and drive from the fans during the season almost willed the Jets to wins they may not otherwise have been able to achieve. It nearly happened again on Saturday night, as once again in the MTS Centre the fans are a factor just like they were from the start of this season. I happened to record the last two minutes as people rose to their feet to cheer their beloved team and below is that video capturing that moment and the tying goal.
Fans lined up to receive the "shirts off their back" from the Jets players post game
The final salute before leaving the ice
The players and fans exchanging jerseys and autographs after the game.
There is much more to come when looking back on this season but more importantly the future seasons to come with the Winnipeg Jets. There will be time for that and it all starts on Monday night with a two hour GM summit with Kevin Chevaldayoff on TSN Radio. Thanks for reading this season and I look for to many great discussions and thoughts through the off season.
This year was a bit different for me in terms of writing. I had to look at a new team and organization which there was very little use in terms of reference. More importantly my role as a writer changed as I was granted media access to the team, something I don't think I ever expected to happen with this writing venture. It's been exciting and an honour to be close to the Jets and the whole team this year and I look forward to many more great events and times as the franchise grows and prospers.
One thing I will say right now is the camaraderie within the regular press group at the MTS Centre is something fantastic. It is a respectful and open group who share and talk in the best way and are tolerant of all. In my few dealings with the media and from some other friends who are true 'media professionals' this is not always the case. Thanks True North- you're a class act away from the ice too!
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