This week, the NHL (National Hockey League) said they had reached a deal to move the Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg. The team will play next season.
The announcement was made at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg. (Winnipeg is the capital of Manitoba.) As soon as it was made, thousands of people clapped and cheered. They also started singing “The Hockey Song,” a song made famous by Canadian singer Stompin’ Tom Connors. The song is a kind of “Canadian anthem” for hockey fans.
Fans gathered in the streets to celebrate, especially at Winnipeg’s famous intersection, Portage and Main.
It cost more than $170 million to buy the team, plus a $60-million relocation fee. However, having an NHL team will help to boost Winnipeg’s economy.
One fan told CBC news that when the Jets left Winnipeg, it was like taking part of the city’s heart out. Now, that “wrong” has been corrected. A name hasn’t yet been chosen for the team, although it seems that many fans want the team to be called the Winnipeg Jets. The Jets had some great players, including Bobby Hull and Dale Hawerchuk.
The new team needs to sell a lot of tickets if it wants to make money. It will have to sell 13,000 season’s tickets in the 15,000-seat arena, the experts say.
The deal has taken weeks to work out. There were rumours that it was going to happen, but it wasn’t until Tuesday that the official announcement was made. Winnipeg fans can now uncross their fingers.
Related Links
Here’s a CBC article about the move.
Listen to Stompin’ Tom’s The Hockey Song.
CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS
Writing/Discussion Prompt
What do you think the hockey team should be named? Do you think they should keep the name Winnipeg Jets?
Brainstorm names for the new team and share your ideas with a friend.
Reading Prompt
In the article, it said: “One fan told CBC news that when the Jets left Winnipeg, it was like taking part of the city’s heart out.”
What do you think this sentence means? Use evidence from the text and your own ideas to explain your thinking.
Primary
Use stated and implied information and ideas in texts to make simple inferences and reasonable predictions about them (OME, Reading: 1.5).
Junior and Intermediate
Use stated and implied information and ideas in texts to make inferences and construct meaning (OME, Reading: 1.5).
Grammar Feature: Possessive Nouns
When a person, place or thing owns something, it (the noun) becomes possessive. This is often done by adding ‘s to the end of a word. For example: “Fans gathered in the streets to celebrate, especially at Winnipeg’s famous intersection, Portage and Main.” This sentence shows that Winnipeg owns that famous intersection.
Highlight or underline all of the possessive nouns in the article. How do you know they are possessive nouns?
