As most of the regular visitors to Notinhalloffame.com are aware we are (very) slowly putting together our top 50 players of every franchise in the “Big 4” of North American sports. After that is completed we will take a look at how each organization honors their past players and executives.

As such, it is important to note the Winnipeg Jets Hall of Fame has announced that they will be inducting former players, Lars-Erik Sjoberg and Ab McDonald to their institution at their February 26 home game.

Sjorberg joined the Jets after playing in his native Sweden for various teams and twice at the Olympics (1968 & 1972). The Defenceman would be 30 when he arrived in Manitoba and he proved himself to be a good playmaker accruing 40 or more Assists in his first four years in the WHA. In the 1977-78 season Sjoberg would win the Dennis A. Murphy Trophy as the league’s best blueliner and he would help the team win three Avco Cups (1976, 1978 & 1979). When the team joined the National Hockey League, Sjoberg would become the first Jets Captain in the NHL. He would retire after the 1979-80 season.

Ab McDonald was a three time Stanley Cup Champion and five time Al Star who played fourteen years in the NHL before he joined the Jets in their inaugural season. McDonald was named the first Team Captain and he was with the team for two years scoring 70 Points with the team.

We do want to point out that while the Jets Hall of Fame includes players from the first incarnation, the current one does not own the history of the franchise hence when we do our all-time 50 for this team we have to base it on the beginning as the Atlanta Thrashers.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Lars-Erik Sjoberg and Ab McDonald for earning this very impressive honor.

Again, can we state how much this is a work in progress?

We here at Notinhalloffame.com are in the process of putting together the top 50 players for the main North American Franchises, which comprises of the NHL, NFL, MLB and the NBA.

As such, here is another one that we are proud to display as our Top 50 Winnipeg Jets of All Time are now up.

Before we get to the Top 50, what needs to be noted about this particular franchise list is that this list ONLY reflects the current incarnation whose history begins with the Atlanta Thrashers.  This is because the Arizona Coyotes still owns the history of the original Winnipeg Jets and when we do that organization, we will be looking at the Winnipeg/Phoenix/Arizona team history.

Basically, we are telling you that if you are looking for Teemu Selanne, Bobby Hull or Dale Hawerchuk, you won’t find them here.

The Complete List can be found here and we encourage you all to take a look at this list.

In a few weeks we will continue our work on this project with a return to the gridiron and the All-Time Indianapolis Colts.

As always, we here at Notinhalloffame.com thank you for your support.

Mathieu Perrault was already an established mid-line Center when he signed with the Winnipeg Jets as a Free Agent in 2014, and he continued to playmake at that level for his new club.

The gigantic Texan (he stands at 6’ 8”), Tyler Myers is a former Calder Trophy winner (albeit with the Buffalo Sabres) has always been able to use his size effectively.

Spending two seasons with the Winnipeg Jets, Czech born Left Winger, Michael Frolik would put up remarkably consistent numbers, scoring 42 Points in both of his seasons in Winnipeg.  Frolik brought a winning temperament to Winnipeg, as he was a member of the Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks prior to becoming a Jet.

Greg de Vries was an undrafted blueliner who would win the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche.  He would later play two full seasons in Atlanta and gave the team solid defensive play along with his best offensive output with a 35 Point season in the 2005/06 campaign with 59 overall as a Thrasher.

Donald Audette’s stay with the Atlanta Thrashers was a brief one as he played less than 100 games for the team.  Still, this is a player who average over a point per game in Atlanta and was the franchise’s All Star representative in 2001.  That season saw him record his highest goal output (34) although he was traded late that year to Buffalo.

Andrew Brunette really developed his playmaking skills at the professional level in his two years in Atlanta.  Brunette’s first 20 Goal season was in Atlanta as was his first 50 Point campaign of which he would have two for the Thrashers, which incidentally was the amount of years he played for the team.

Playing for the Atlanta Thrashers for six seasons, Garnet Exelby was a stay-at-home defenseman who exceeded expectations as an eighth round pick.  Exelby wasn’t much of a scorer but did provide 10 Defensive Point Shares over his Thrasher career.

Playing his last six of his ten NHL seasons with the Winnpeg Jets, Mark Stuart patrolled the blue line in an effective stay-at-home fashion.  Stuart’s rugged style of play has not resulted in a lot of points but that is not what he is paid to do.

While Todd White was only an Atlanta Thrasher for three years of his career, it was his second season there where he would by far have his greatest offensive output.  In the 2008-09 season, the undrafted Center would tabulate 73 Points, 51 of them assists.  He would also receive votes for the Frank J. Selke and Lady Byng Trophy while playing in Atlanta.  He would accumulate 136 Points as a Thrasher.

It is true that Patrik Stefan is in the conversation for the worst number one pick in NHL history, with the relatively weak history of the Atlanta Thrashers/Winnipeg Jets, he still can make it on a list such as this.

An Atlanta Thrasher for nearly three seasons, Rich Peverley averaged nearly .70 Points per game while playing for the organization.  Peverley’s best full statistical season in the National Hockey League was in Atlanta where he had 55 Points and his lone 20 Goal season.  He would overall have 127 Points with Atlanta.

Ron Hainsey played five seasons with the Thrashers/Jets and the American born blueliner would have his best pro seasons for that organization.  Hainsey would score 39 Points in the 2008/09 season, which was his best offensive output of his career.

It was late in his career when he arrived in Atlanta, but Ray Ferraro, “The Big Ball of Hate” still had plenty left in the tank.  In the 2000-01 season at the age of 36, Ferraro had 76 Points, which was one of four seasons in which he had over 75 Points in a campaign.  Ferraro scored 147 of his 898 career Points as a Thrasher.

Claimed in the expansion draft, Yannick Tremblay was an Atlanta Thrasher for five seasons and easily was at his best in the NHL while playing in the state of Georgia.  Tremblay would hit 30 points twice for Atlanta and 107 of his 125 career Points as a Thrasher.

A product of the United States Hockey system, Jacob Trouba was a First Round Pic and former school MVP at Michiigan.  Professionally, he played his first six years in the NHL with the team thst took him, the Winnipeg Jets, with each year showing marked approvement.

A member of the Swedish 2006 Olympic Gold Medal team, Defenceman, Niclas Havelid was known for his shot-blocking and dedication to the blueline.  Havelid played half of his NHL games with the Atlanta Thrashers (2005-09) and had 28 Assists in the 2005/06 season, which would be the best of his career.

At some point in time, we plan do take a serious look at all the individual Halls of Fame.  We will get there eventually, and when we do the Winnipeg Jets will now be part of it as they have announced their own Hall of Fame.

The new Hall will not open empty, as their famed “Hot Line” of Bobby Hull, Ulf Nilsson and Anders Hedberg from the 1970’s will be the first inductees.  The ceremony will take place at the Jets home game against the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 19.

Bobby Hull made headlines when he jumped to the upstart World Hockey Association and signed with the Jets becoming the first hockey player to sign a million dollar contract.  “The Golden Jet” would play for Winnipeg for 411 Games scoring 638 Points.  He would win the WHA MVP Award in 1973 and 1975 and would enter the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983.

Anders Hedberg palyed for the Jests for the four seasons and had over 100 Points in each of them.  Hedberg would later become a member of the Swedish and IIHF Hockey Hall of Fame.

Ulf Nilsson also played for four seasons in Winnipeg and averaged 100 Points per season.  Like Hedberg, he would join the New York Rangers following his WHA run. 

It is worth noting that while the Jets are creating their own Hall of Fame, the actual history of the first version belongs to the Arizona Coyotes.  That fact will be reflected on our upcoming Top 50 Winnipeg Jets of all-time.

Still, we here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Hull, Nilsson and Hedberg for earning this honor.   

One of the longest tenured players in Thrasher/Jets history with nearly 600 Games Played, Jim Slater was a checking line fixture for years for the organization.  Slater was not much of a scorer, but a locker room “glue guy” who would spend all of his ten NHL campaigns with Atlanta/Winnipeg.  Slater accumulated 138 Points over his career.