The Phoenix Coyotes are a product of the original WHA that played its first games back in the 1972-73 season. When the WHA Winnipeg Jets folded into the NHL, they continued to attract and sign major names in hockey. First it was Bobby Hull and Anders Hedberg in the WHA. Then came stars like Dale Hawerchuk and Teemu Selanne in the NHL, and now as the Phoenix Coyotes players like Jeremy Roenick and Keith Tkachuk are trying to bring the Stanley Cup home for the first time.

The Winnipeg Jets first appeared in the 1960's when entrepreneur Ben Hatskin brought the team into the Western Canadian Hockey Association. The team actually had little success but when the WHA decided to open its doors, Hatskin saw an opportunity, and the Jets were admitted into the WHA. It didn't take long for the Jets and the WHA to set the hockey world on fire by signing Bobby Hull, one of the NHL's premier players at the time. Hull signed for a $2.75 million contract, which touched off a flurry of defections and after the dust settled, 60 more players had jumped leagues.

The NHL launched lawsuit after lawsuit to try and prevent the new league from getting a foothold. Because of the legal actions Hull missed the first 15 games of the season until an American judge ruled that the NHL charges were harassment, but was still named coach.

The Jets' inaugural game was played on October 12, 1972 in Madison Square Garden against the New York Raiders, defeating them 6-4. The Jets went on to play for the league championship Avco Cup but lost to New England in the final.

The Jets were one of the first teams to tap into the European hockey system. They signed players like Anders Hedberg, Lars-Erik Sjoberg, Veli-Pekka Ketola and Heikki Riihiranta and in 1975 added three more Swedes-Willy Lindstrom, Mats Lindh and Dan Labraaten. The Jets won the Avco Cup that year and repeated the feat in 1978 and 1979.

When the Jets and 3 other WHA teams were admitted into the NHL, they were not the same team they were in the early days of the WHA. Hull was coming to the end of his career and franchise players like Hedberg and Nilsoson were elsewhere in the NHL. The Jets also didn't fare well in the Expansion Draft. Their first draft pick was Jimmy Mann who in eight years in the NHL managed only 30 points over 293 games.

The Jets opened their NHL career on October 10, 1979 with a 4-2 loss against the Pittsburgh Penguins with Morris Lukowich scoring the Jets first NHL goal. He went on to lead the club with 35 goals, 39 assists for 74 points. The second season proved to be even tougher on the Jets, especially on the road. They went through 3 coaches and finished last in the NHL with a 9-57-14 record. But the next season they rebounded and finished with a 33-33-14 record to put them second in the Norris Division.

The Jets used their first round draft pick in 1981 to secure Dale Hawerchuk. Like Hull, Hawerchuk was to be the franchise's main player, and as with Hull, signed his contract at the main intersection of Winnipeg, Portage and Main. Hawerchuk wasted little time and locked up top rookie honours with 45 goals and 103 points. Tom Watt, coach of the University of Toronto Blues was also hired and while Hawerchuk took the Calder Trophy, Watt took the Jack Adams Trophy.

The Jets were good enough to make it to the playoffs, but always seemed to be eliminated in the early rounds. Beginning in 1982 and lasting until 1988, they were not able to get beyond the Division Championship series. Watt was replaced by Barry Long who was in turn replaced by Dan Maloney. In 1988, John Ferguson lost his job as g.m. and was replaced by Mike Smith and Rick Bowness was brought in as the new coach. After a losing year, Bowness was then replaced by Bob Murdoch, who promptly took the Jets to the playoffs.

Both Smith and Ferguson were known for their tempers and frugal nature. That didn't sit well with several players and that caused some tension amongst the ranks. Hawerchuk wasn't getting along with management and was granted a trade to Buffalo for Phil Housley who also was traded because of contract issues to St Louis. Goalie Bob Essensa went all the way to arbitration with the Jets and was awarded the first NHL $1 million arbitration award.

Smith's last claim to fame was that he managed to attract several future stars to the Jets. Through luck or skill he brought together such players as Temmu Selanne, Teppo Numminen, Alexei Zhamnov, Keith Tkachuk and Nikolai Khabibulin were signed to the Jets. Selanne wasted no time once he made it to the NHL. He played his first game when he was 22 and managed to set a record that still exists today for the most goals scored by a rookie (76), his closest competitor was Mike Bossy with 53. Selanne received all 50 first place votes for the Calder Trophy that year.

The lockout shortened season of 1994-95 saw the beginning of the end for the Jets. Rising salaries and facility costs were straining the finances of the team. Besides the poor state of the Winnipeg Arena, the local government had now become involved in the team. The Manitoba Entertainment Complex tried to put a deal together but the deal couldn't be finalized, and the owners had to look at alternatives. After the end of the 1994-95 season the public got involved in the "Spirit of Manitoba" to try and save the Jets. The local and provincial governments agreed to pitch in to build a new arena, but it was all too late.

The following season the Jets averaged only 11,316 fans per game and Teemu Selanne was traded to Anaheim for Oleg Tverdovsky and Chad Kilger. In a last gasp, the Jets made it to the playoffs but were eliminated in the first round by the powerful Detroit Red Wings, and on April 28, 1996, NHL hockey came to an end in Winnipeg. The Jets were purchased for $68 million by Richard Burke and Steven Gluckstern and moved to Phoenix for the 1996-97 season.

Don Hay was the first coach of the Coyotes and led the team to an unimpressive 38-37-7 record, playing out of the America West Arena. Hay was dismissed and replaced by Jim Schoenfeld. For the next 4 years, the best the Coyotes would do is second place in their division, but they could never get past the Conference Quarter Finals. Bob Francis took over the coaching duties from Schoenfeld in 1999. With players like Roenick, Travis Green and Keith Tkachuk, the Coyotes have the nucleus to begin the rebuilding process.