Rank The Best ALL-TIME Jet Defensemen!

[sipowicz]

The Jets of the 70's were one of the best clubs in hockey. Sjoberg was the Jets best defenceman. He most certainly belongs in the conversation.

The mid to late 70's WHA Jets were good because they had one NHL calibre line (Hull, Hedberg, Nilsson), D and goaltending were way below even NHL standards of the time! This they were one of the best teams in hockey doesn't fly as the NHL was playing a WWE brand of hockey at the time and the Jets would have been slaughtered by the goon hockey of the day!

Beating a crappy Penguins team in an exhibition game 4-3 in the late 70's doesn't equate to greatness!

WHA clubs all had great talent in the final season but only about half the WHA players on each teams eventually made it in the NHL!

 

[Lars65]

Ya there were no goon teams in the WHA for the Jets to deal with. How foolish of me.

 

[cbcwpg]

Jets 2.0 - Byfuglien
Jets 1.0 - Numminen
Jets WHA - Sjoberg

Every era and league is different. Hard to compare straight up.

 

[sipowicz]

Ya there were no goon teams in the WHA for the Jets to deal with. How foolish of me.

Yeah I'm old enough to remember the Birmingham Bulls!

 

[Yukon Joe]

The mid to late 70's WHA Jets were good because they had one NHL calibre line (Hull, Hedberg, Nilsson), D and goaltending were way below even NHL standards of the time! This they were one of the best teams in hockey doesn't fly as the NHL was playing a WWE brand of hockey at the time and the Jets would have been slaughtered by the goon hockey of the day!

Beating a crappy Penguins team in an exhibition game 4-3 in the late 70's doesn't equate to greatness!

WHA clubs all had great talent in the final season but only about half the WHA players on each teams eventually made it in the NHL!

The Hot Line wasn't just NHL calibre - it was world class elite. And other players on that team were certainly NHL calibre.

And although the WHA and NHL never seriously played against each other, they did have games against a common foe: the Soviets. And the Jets success against Red Army, compared to the very mixed success the NHL had, shows the WHA Jets could certainly have competed with NH teams.

 

[Lars65]

Either way the thread is about the Jets best defenders. Sjoberg was one of the best Jets defenders of the 70's. He was certainly good enough to be sought after by the Canadiens, widely acknowledged as one of the best NHL teams of the era. So why wouldn't he belong in the conversation?

 

[DowntownBooster]

Sjoberg was a guy too tiny for the NHL, he had a few good seasons in the AHL tweener level WHA and sucked big time in his lone NHL season a season where the team had a AHL level defence , by year two of Jets 1.0 he couldn’t make the team when the Jets managed to find some journey man NHL D men, end of story

In year two of the Jets 1.0 not one D man from year one aside from Campbell (who was physically done) made it on the roster!

The myth of Sjoberg is laughable here!

I can see someone from Toronto making the claim that the WHA was on the level of the AHL and that Sjoberg was too tiny to play in the NHL but it sounds very surprising to hear that point of view coming from a fellow Winnipegger.

Sjoberg spent 12 seasons in the Swedish elite division before coming to Winnipeg and was 30 years old when he came here. Even at that age he could turn on a dime. I think I'll defer to Anders Hedberg as well as those who played against Sjoberg for a correct opinion on how skilled he was at his position and the respect he received for his abilities.

I don't claim he was the Jets top defenceman of all time but he was certainly amongst the best of them and certainly shouldn't be overlooked because of his height or the fact that he couldn't maintain the level of compete by the time he was 36. It was only one year prior to that first NHL season that he suffered an Achilles tendon injury. That more than anything probably had an effect on his play in 1979-80 along with the lack of talent on the team overall from losing most of our best players upon entry into the NHL.

 

[blues10]

People may dislike Sjoberg being on the Jets top 10 D list for a variety of reasons but his hockey resume can’t be disputed.

He won the best defenseman award at the 74 World Championships when Tretiak was top goalie and Vaclav Nedomansky was top forward. He joined the Jets the following September.

He captained the Sweden team at the 76 Canada Cup when guys like Hedberg, Nillson and Salmimg were on the team. He was on the Jets at this time.

There is a reason Sam Pollock and the Habs wouldn’t play the Jets and he is one of them. The guy could flat out play.

In 79/80 he played in 79 games as a 35 year old coming off an injury. Pretty hard to carry the likes of Craig Norwich, Scott Campbell, Al Cameron, Ross Cory, Barry Melrose, Gord Smith, Don MacIver and Mike Amodeo.

I’m glad he is going into the Jets hall of fame as the 1st dman. He deserves it and any top 10 Jets list without him is flat out wrong.

 

[bennylundholm]

Sjoberg was a guy too tiny for the NHL, he had a few good seasons in the AHL tweener level WHA and sucked big time in his lone NHL season a season where the team had a AHL level defence , by year two of Jets 1.0 he couldn’t make the team when the Jets managed to find some journey man NHL D men, end of story

In year two of the Jets 1.0 not one D man from year one aside from Campbell (who was physically done) made it on the roster!

The myth of Sjoberg is laughable here!

I'll be judging Sip here as well.
Sjoberg was an elite level defenseman. The fact he joined the Jets at age 30 means his prime years were behind him. Still, he was a great defenseman for the Jets in the mid-70's. He definitely was overmatched when the joined the NHL as he was coming off a major injury and was entering his late 30's.

Definitely top 5 all-time Jets D on a realistic top 10 list.

 

[GNP]

Yeah I'm old enough to remember the Birmingham Bulls

_______________________________________________________

Yeah, and don't forget to mention the Houston Aeros with Gordie Howe and his sons all playing together on the same team. I think the Phoenix Roadrunners as well ?? Those were the old hockey WWE days !!!

 

[sipowicz]

I’ll give Sjoberg his due he was the Jets best D man of the Jets 1.0 WHA version but to compare against guys from NHL Jets 1.0 or 2.0 is ridiculous!

 

[pucka lucka]

Housely
Byfuglien
Numminen
Trouba
Babych
Carlyle
Enstrom
Sjoberg
Ellett
Igor Ulanov

 

[Arthur Fonzarelli]

I’ll give Sjoberg his due he was the Jets best D man of the Jets 1.0 WHA version but to compare against guys from NHL Jets 1.0 or 2.0 is ridiculous!

Not sure what to make of your posts regarding Sjoberg.

Some of them state he wasn't a great NHL defensemen, but he was a shadow of his younger self by the time the Jets entered the NHL. Despite this he still scored 34 points for the Jets in their inaugural NHL season. That placed him as the 39th best offensive defensemen in the NHL that season when 36 years old just two points back Randy Carlyle's in the same season.

When younger he was the literally the best player in Sweden in the 68-69 seasons, was on the 1974 World All-Star Team, and won top defensemen at the 1974 World Championships.

Neilson, Hedberg & Hull have all acknowledged his talent, meanwhile you've went on for days & pages running him down.

 

[sipowicz]

Not sure what to make of your posts regarding Sjoberg.

Some of them state he wasn't a great NHL defensemen, but he was a shadow of his younger self by the time the Jets entered the NHL. Despite this he still scored 34 points for the Jets in their inaugural NHL season. That placed him as the 39th best offensive defensemen in the NHL that season when 36 years old just two points back Randy Carlyle's in the same season.

When younger he was the literally the best player in Sweden in the 68-69 seasons, was on the 1974 World All-Star Team, and won top defensemen at the 1974 World Championships.

Neilson, Hedberg & Hull have all acknowledged his talent, meanwhile you've went on for days & pages running him down.

He was good in the WHA but the WHA wasn’t the NHL and neither was the Swedish league, you really think a 5’6”” D man would have cut it in the NHL ever? Let’s not try to compare players from one era to another era ever! Three quarters of the D men from the NHL Jets 1.0 era wouldn’t even make the NHL now, most of the Jets WHA D wouldn’t make the AHL!

Someone asked Bobby Clarke how the 74’ Flyers would do in the NHL his reply was that the 74’ Flyers wouldn’t have beat the Flyers AHL team the Phantoms!

 

[Arthur Fonzarelli]

He was good in the WHA but the WHA wasn’t the NHL and neither was the Swedish league, you really think a 5’6” D man would have cut it in the NHL ever? Let’s not try to compare players from one era to another era ever! Three quarters of the D men from the NHL Jets 1.0 era wouldn’t even make the NHL now, most of the Jets WHA D wouldn’t make the AHL!

First off he was 5'8", anyways...

You'll have few disagreeing that todays NHL player is bigger, faster & stronger. They have better gear, better nutrition, better conditioning...sports science in hockey is relatively new.

But if you're going to suggest that 1974 Sjoberg couldn't play todays game, that argument could apply to virtually any defensemen of that era. Would 2019 McDavid walk around 1978 Robinson? Quite likely.

When creating all time lists, you can only compare a player relative to their era. The degree to which one stood out from their competition is what is relevant. Sjoberg was a standout. Had he played in the NHL in his prime he would have excelled, at least on par with fellow Swede Salming.

You had a post that referenced a 4-3 win the Jets had over Pittsburgh. WHA teams played the NHL far more often than many fans realize.

1974

September
26-Houston Aeros 5, St.Louis Blues 3
28-New England Whalers 2, Philidalphia Flyers 4
29-Winnipeg Jets 1, Atlanta Flames 3

October
5-San Diego Mariners 4, California Golden Seals 3
6-Toronto Toros 3, Minnesota North Stars 5
6-Edmonton Oilers 3, Vancouver Canucks 4
6-Cleveland Crusaders 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 5

1975

No Exhibition games were played.

1976

September
21-Birmingham Bulls 7, Atlanta Flames 6
21-Houston Aeros 1, Pittsburgh Penguins 5
23-Calgary Cowboys 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 7
24-Winnipeg Jets 5, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
26-Edmonton Oilers 1, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
26-Indianapolis Racers 1, Washington Capitals 2
26-Winnipeg Jets 6, St. Louis Blues 2

October
1-New England Whalers 2, New York Rangers 2

1977

September
25-New England Whalers 2, Chicago Black Hawks 2
28-New England Whalers 5, Washington Capitals 4
28-Winnipeg Jets 1, Minnesota North Stars 2
30-Birmingham Bulls 0, Atlanta Flames 3
30-New England Whalers 7, New York Rangers 4

October
1-New England Whalers 0, Boston Bruins 5
1-Winnipeg Jets 4, Minnesota North Stars 3
3-Edmonton Oilers 3, St.Louis Blues 2
4-New England Whalers 5, Atlanta Flames 4
5-Houston Aeros 3, Atlanta Flames 5
5-Winnipeg Jets 6, St.Louis Blues 2
6-Winnipeg Jets 3, St.Louis Blues 0
7-New England Whalers 9, Pittsburgh Penguins 0
7-Birmingham Bulls 0, St. Louis Blues 4
8-Quebec Nordiques 5, New York Rangers 5
8-Edmonton Oilers 5, Detroit Red Wings 4
9-New England Whalers 4, Atlanta Flames 3
9-Edmonton Oilers 2, Cleveland Barons 4
9-Winnipeg Jets 1, Detroit Red Wings 0
10-Quebec Nordiques 5, Washington Capitals 1

1978

September
23-New England Whalers 5, Washington Capitals 2
24-Winnipeg Jets 2, St. Louis Blues 2
26-Winnipeg Jets 3, Colorado Rockies 5
27-Quebec Nordiques 3, Colorado Rockies 2
27-New England Whalers 5, New York Islanders 2
28-Birmingham Bulls 4, Atlanta Flames 2
28-Winnipeg Jets 2, New York Rangers 4
30-Quebec Nordiques 4, Washington Capitals 7

October
1-Quebec Nordiques 5, Minnesota North Stars 2
1-New England Whalers 5, Washington Capitals 1
2-Winnipeg Jets 4, New York Rangers 7
3-New England Whalers 5, Detroit Red Wings 7
3-Edmonton Oilers 4, Minnesota North Stars 2
3-Quebec Nordiques 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 0
4-New England Whalers 3, Detroit Red Wings 0
4-Edmonton Oilers 5, Vancouver Canucks 3
5-Quebec Nordiques 5, Chicago Black Hawks 2
5-Winnipeg Jets 5, Minnesota North Stars 5
5-Birmingham Bulls 3, St.Louis Blues 4
6-New England Whalers 4, Chicago Black Hawks 4
6-Indianapolis Racers 4, St.Louis Blues 1
7-Edmonton Oilers 3, Minnesota North Stars 9
7-Quebec Nordiques 4, New York Rangers 1
7-Cincinnati Stingers 6, Pittsburgh Penguins 4
8-Edmonton Oilers 6, Colorado Rockies 4
8-Winnipeg Jets 6, Minnesota North Stars 5
8-New England Whalers 4, New York Rangers 4

Overall WHA vs NHL results:

Over 67 games played the WHA won 33 times & lost 27 times to NHL clubs. There were also 7 ties. Scoring totals had the WHA 245GF to 239GA.

 

[sipowicz]

It was exhibition so there were a ton of variables

 

[bennylundholm]

First off he was 5'8", anyways...

You'll have few disagreeing that todays NHL player is bigger, faster & stronger. They have better gear, better nutrition, better conditioning...sports science in hockey is relatively new.

But if you're going to suggest that 1974 Sjoberg couldn't play todays game, that argument could apply to virtually any defensemen of that era. Would 2019 McDavid walk around 1978 Robinson? Quite likely.

When creating all time lists, you can only compare a player relative to their era. The degree to which one stood out from their competition is what is relevant. Sjoberg was a standout. Had he played in the NHL in his prime he would have excelled, at least on par with fellow Swede Salming.

You had a post that referenced a 4-3 win the Jets had over Pittsburgh. WHA teams played the NHL far more often than many fans realize.

1974

September
26-Houston Aeros 5, St.Louis Blues 3
28-New England Whalers 2, Philidalphia Flyers 4
29-Winnipeg Jets 1, Atlanta Flames 3

October
5-San Diego Mariners 4, California Golden Seals 3
6-Toronto Toros 3, Minnesota North Stars 5
6-Edmonton Oilers 3, Vancouver Canucks 4
6-Cleveland Crusaders 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 5

1975

No Exhibition games were played.

1976

September
21-Birmingham Bulls 7, Atlanta Flames 6
21-Houston Aeros 1, Pittsburgh Penguins 5
23-Calgary Cowboys 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 7
24-Winnipeg Jets 5, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
26-Edmonton Oilers 1, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
26-Indianapolis Racers 1, Washington Capitals 2
26-Winnipeg Jets 6, St. Louis Blues 2

October
1-New England Whalers 2, New York Rangers 2

1977

September
25-New England Whalers 2, Chicago Black Hawks 2
28-New England Whalers 5, Washington Capitals 4
28-Winnipeg Jets 1, Minnesota North Stars 2
30-Birmingham Bulls 0, Atlanta Flames 3
30-New England Whalers 7, New York Rangers 4

October
1-New England Whalers 0, Boston Bruins 5
1-Winnipeg Jets 4, Minnesota North Stars 3
3-Edmonton Oilers 3, St.Louis Blues 2
4-New England Whalers 5, Atlanta Flames 4
5-Houston Aeros 3, Atlanta Flames 5
5-Winnipeg Jets 6, St.Louis Blues 2
6-Winnipeg Jets 3, St.Louis Blues 0
7-New England Whalers 9, Pittsburgh Penguins 0
7-Birmingham Bulls 0, St. Louis Blues 4
8-Quebec Nordiques 5, New York Rangers 5
8-Edmonton Oilers 5, Detroit Red Wings 4
9-New England Whalers 4, Atlanta Flames 3
9-Edmonton Oilers 2, Cleveland Barons 4
9-Winnipeg Jets 1, Detroit Red Wings 0
10-Quebec Nordiques 5, Washington Capitals 1

1978

September
23-New England Whalers 5, Washington Capitals 2
24-Winnipeg Jets 2, St. Louis Blues 2
26-Winnipeg Jets 3, Colorado Rockies 5
27-Quebec Nordiques 3, Colorado Rockies 2
27-New England Whalers 5, New York Islanders 2
28-Birmingham Bulls 4, Atlanta Flames 2
28-Winnipeg Jets 2, New York Rangers 4
30-Quebec Nordiques 4, Washington Capitals 7

October
1-Quebec Nordiques 5, Minnesota North Stars 2
1-New England Whalers 5, Washington Capitals 1
2-Winnipeg Jets 4, New York Rangers 7
3-New England Whalers 5, Detroit Red Wings 7
3-Edmonton Oilers 4, Minnesota North Stars 2
3-Quebec Nordiques 3, Pittsburgh Penguins 0
4-New England Whalers 3, Detroit Red Wings 0
4-Edmonton Oilers 5, Vancouver Canucks 3
5-Quebec Nordiques 5, Chicago Black Hawks 2
5-Winnipeg Jets 5, Minnesota North Stars 5
5-Birmingham Bulls 3, St.Louis Blues 4
6-New England Whalers 4, Chicago Black Hawks 4
6-Indianapolis Racers 4, St.Louis Blues 1
7-Edmonton Oilers 3, Minnesota North Stars 9
7-Quebec Nordiques 4, New York Rangers 1
7-Cincinnati Stingers 6, Pittsburgh Penguins 4
8-Edmonton Oilers 6, Colorado Rockies 4
8-Winnipeg Jets 6, Minnesota North Stars 5
8-New England Whalers 4, New York Rangers 4

Overall WHA vs NHL results:

Over 67 games played the WHA won 33 times & lost 27 times to NHL clubs. There were also 7 ties. Scoring totals had the WHA 245GF to 239GA.

Great post Fonzy!

 

[bennylundholm]

It was exhibition so there were a ton of variables

Some great posts about Sjoberg with factual info.
The fact is that Sjoberg was one of the best D throughout the late 60's and 70's.
He certainly would have been a very, very good NHL defenseman at that time.

 

[Arthur Fonzarelli]

It was exhibition so there were a ton of variables

blah blah blah...

This isn't like comparing the CFL to the NFL. The WHA was a real league and at it's peak had teams that would have legitimately competed at the NHL level. Professionals that played the game admit as much. Were there perennial crap WHA teams? Yes. Did the league suck in it's last year? Yes.

I've scolded countless people for suggesting the 1978-1979 AVCO Cup champion Jets were anything to be celebrated. I've scolded more for the rewriting of history that the NHL stole all the WHA Jets players, when 80%+ of that last team contained a roster of players, that were out of professional hockey at any level within two years of the four teams being absorbed into the NHL. The truth was the 1977-1978 Jets lost their best players to free agency in the summer of 1978, most notably Hedberg & Neilsson to the Rangers who at the time had Fergie as their GM.

As for the 1974-1978 Jets, the team was incredible and seen by many as one of the best teams in hockey history. Sjoberg was the captain of those teams.

You live in Winnipeg. Get your head out of the sand and celebrate our WHA roots.

 

[sipowicz]

blah blah blah...

This isn't like comparing the CFL to the NFL. The WHA was a real league and at it's peak had teams that would have legitimately competed at the NHL level. Professionals that played the game admit as much. Were there perennial crap WHA teams? Yes. Did the league suck in it's last year? Yes.

I've scolded countless people for suggesting the 1978-1979 AVCO Cup champion Jets were anything to be celebrated. I've scolded more for the rewriting of history that the NHL stole all the WHA Jets players, when 80%+ of that last team contained a roster of players, that were out of professional hockey at any level within a year of the four teams being absorbed into the NHL. The truth was the 1977-1978 Jets lost their best players to free agency in the summer of 1978, most notably Hedberg & Neilsson to the Rangers who at the time had Fergie as their GM.

As for the 1974-1978 Jets, the team was incredible and seen by many as one of the best teams in hockey history. Sjoberg was the captain of those teams.

You live in Winnipeg. Get your head out of the sand and celebrate our WHA roots.

• The number of WHA players who went on to the inaugural 79-80 who only played a year in the NHL was huge, the WHA had many top NHL level players but the rosters also included a lot of guys who were AHL level, as I said already not one Jets D man aside from Campbell played another season in the NHL after the inaugural NHL season.

The WHA had a lot of really good forwards but also had a lot of crappy D men and crappy goaltenders.

 

[sipowicz]

Some great posts about Sjoberg with factual info.
The fact is that Sjoberg was one of the best D throughout the late 60's and 70's.
He certainly would have been a very, very good NHL defenseman at that time.

I think that's entirely debateable, sadly we'll never know how he would have done against NHL calibre talent while Sjoberg was in his prime.

 

[Arthur Fonzarelli]

• The number of WHA players who went on to the inaugural 79-80 who only played a year in the NHL was huge, the WHA had many top NHL level players but the rosters also included a lot of guys who were AHL level, as I said already not one Jets D man aside from Campbell played another season in the NHL after the inaugural NHL season.

The WHA had a lot of really good forwards but also had a lot of crappy D men and crappy goaltenders.

I've researched this extensively. There's a post several years old here on HFBoards where I list off every member of the 78-79 Jets and the remainder of their career. I'll post later when I'm in front of my desktop. The numbers aren't good and will back up my earlier post.

 

[Arthur Fonzarelli]

I've researched this extensively. There's a post several years old here on HFBoards where I list off every member of the 78-79 Jets and the remainder of their career. I'll post later when I'm in front of my desktop. The numbers aren't good and will back up my earlier post.

EDIT: The original post in the link below was sorted by points. I quickly sorted by games played to press home the point. Appears in italics below.

This day in history: May 20, 1979

The following was the Jets complete 1978-1979 roster. In brackets is the amount of NHL games played by each player after expansion

Terry Ruskowski (630) reclaimed by Chicago, acquired 9 months prior when Aeros folded
Morris Lukowich (582)
Willy Lindstrom (582)
Rich Preston (580) reclaimed by Chicago, acquired 9 months prior when Aeros folded
Kent Nilsson (553) reclaimed by Atlanta
Barry Long (150) reclaimed by Detroit, but reacquired by the Jets
Paul MacKinnon (147) reclaimed by Washington
Peter Sullivan (126)
Glenn Hicks (108) reclaimed by Detroit
Kim Clackson (106) reclaimed by Pittsburgh
Markus Mattsson (92)
Scott Campbell (80)
Lars-Erik Sjoberg (79)
Lyle Moffat (74)
Bill Lesuk (49)
John Gibson (48)
Bobby Hull (27)
Gary Smith (20)
Mike Amodeo (19)
Bob Guindon (6)
John Gray (0)
Paul Terbenche (0)
Roland Eriksson (0)
Steve West (0)
Bill Davis (0)
Ted Green (0)
Joe Daley (0)
Rich Gosselin (0)
Dale Yakiwchuk (0)

So over this entire roster FIVE players went on to play more than 160 games/2 NHL seasons. Hardly a ringing endorsement on how great this team was.

Two of these stayed in Winnipeg, Lukowich & Lindstrom, Two more went to Chicago, but as mentioned both Preston & Ruskowski spent all of 9 months in Winnipeg, having been additions to the team when the Houston Aeros folded.

The only real loss was Kent Nillson.

exact point totals can be found here:

Winnipeg Jets 1978-79 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com

As mentioned earlier, no disrepect is intended to the WHA or the Jets. It was a great league in the mid 70's & the Jets teams from 75-77 will always be considered one of the best hockey teams of all time.

That last season, not so much. If you want to point fingers at anyone, point them at then Ranger GM John Fergusson. Yes it was the Jets own "Fergie" that signed Ulf Nillson & Anders Hedberg away to New York following the 1977-1978 season, a year prior to the season being discussed here.

Although I grew to love Fergie, I was always bitter that it was he who signed the key elements of the "Hot Line" away.

 

[bennylundholm]

EDIT: The original post in the link below was sorted by points. I quickly sorted by games played to press home the point. Appears in italics below.

This day in history: May 20, 1979

The following was the Jets complete 1978-1979 roster. In brackets is the amount of NHL games played by each player after expansion

Terry Ruskowski (630) reclaimed by Chicago, acquired 9 months prior when Aeros folded
Morris Lukowich (582)
Willy Lindstrom (582)
Rich Preston (580) reclaimed by Chicago, acquired 9 months prior when Aeros folded
Kent Nilsson (553) reclaimed by Atlanta
Barry Long (150) reclaimed by Detroit, but reacquired by the Jets
Paul MacKinnon (147) reclaimed by Washington
Peter Sullivan (126)
Glenn Hicks (108) reclaimed by Detroit
Kim Clackson (106) reclaimed by Pittsburgh
Markus Mattsson (92)
Scott Campbell (80)
Lars-Erik Sjoberg (79)
Lyle Moffat (74)
Bill Lesuk (49)
John Gibson (48)
Bobby Hull (27)
Gary Smith (20)
Mike Amodeo (19)
Bob Guindon (6)
John Gray (0)
Paul Terbenche (0)
Roland Eriksson (0)
Steve West (0)
Bill Davis (0)
Ted Green (0)
Joe Daley (0)
Rich Gosselin (0)
Dale Yakiwchuk (0)

So over this entire roster FIVE players went on to play more than 160 games/2 NHL seasons. Hardly a ringing endorsement on how great this team was.

Two of these stayed in Winnipeg, Lukowich & Lindstrom, Two more went to Chicago, but as mentioned both Preston & Ruskowski spent all of 9 months in Winnipeg, having been additions to the team when the Houston Aeros folded.

The only real loss was Kent Nillson.

exact point totals can be found here:

Winnipeg Jets 1978-79 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com

As mentioned earlier, no disrepect is intended to the WHA or the Jets. It was a great league in the mid 70's & the Jets teams from 75-77 will always be considered one of the best hockey teams of all time.

That last season, not so much. If you want to point fingers at anyone, point them at then Ranger GM John Fergusson. Yes it was the Jets own "Fergie" that signed Ulf Nillson & Anders Hedberg away to New York following the 1977-1978 season, a year prior to the season being discussed here.

Although I grew to love Fergie, I was always bitter that it was he who signed the key elements of the "Hot Line" away.

Great post! Alot of great stats and memories!
For sure, John Ferguson's poor draft choices limited the Jets success throughout the 80's. Other than Hawerchuk, Fergy's 1st rounders were large in size, ready to drop the gloves, but weak in speed and skill compared to other players available. The Oilers made some incredible selections throughout the early 80's.