There are some people in Winnipeg who believe the money is already here. There are others who aren’t so sure, but certainly agree that the money could be found.
Right now, Winnipeg doesn’t have a sugar daddy like Jim Balsillie, running around trying to buy it a National Hockey League franchise, but after a few discussions with some of the city’s more prominent business and political leaders today, one thing is certain: Winnipeg’s attitude and approach to the NHL has changed dramatically from the day in 1996 when the team was shut down and shipped off to the Arizona desert.
The people at the top of the NHL mountain in this town, the people who own True North Sports and Entertainment, don’t want to talk about the NHL. And that’s a good thing. That’s exactly what the NHL wants: Silence, respect, patience. “Keep your mouth shut Winnipeg, don’t make any demands, let us get our house in order and you will, one day, be rewarded.” The Chipman family knows that the less said the better.
Meanwhile, progressive Winnipeggers who are tired of living through icy cold winters alone on the prairie, are looking to our political leaders to at least make an effort to bring the Jets — or a reasonable facsimile — back to town.
One senses there is political will at every level to make it happen. Mayor Sam Katz worries that another disappointment might be too much for some people in this town, but he’s made it clear he’ll do what he can to bring the NHL back to the city. Premier Gary Doer has met with the Chipmans and is confident everything is moving in the right direction.
What we have in this town, at this time, is an agreement in the business and political communities that the NHL’s return to Winnipeg is feasible. It’s not an empty net goal, but the leaders are at least grinding in the corners with the right attitude.
Whether the money is already here or whether the leaders have to get the cash together is not the major concern. The major concern is will and there would appear to be plenty of will.
If the people in Winnipeg with political influence and financial wherewithal can come together — and they appear to be getting closer together — then the Jets will return.
There are a lot of reasons why the Jets might fail a second time. But there are also more compelling reasons to give it a shot. Unlike our leaders in the 1980s and 1990s, the people running the city today, believe that the NHL is an important step in our future as an inviting, intelligent, vibrant, international community.
It’s a credit to all of them that these people believe there is something better out there, something that will make Winnipeg a better place to live. There is no reason to believe, at this stage, that the return of the Jets is an impossible pipe dream.
It’s not only possible now, it could very well be probable.
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