Winnipeg has a NHL team without a name yet, though everybody sort of knows it's going to be called the Jets. Here's another clue: True North's Mark Chipman announced the relocated Atlanta Thrashers will retire Winnipeg Jets Nos. 9 and 25. That makes me cringe.
Evander Kane is out a jersey number, but that's the least of it. This also furthers the possibility that the franchise will divorce itself entirely from its Atlanta origins by neglecting to honor Dan Snyder's No. 37. Though Snyder's number was somehow never officially retired by the team, it still hasn't been worn by anybody else, making for an unofficial retirement.
A Philips Arena tribute to Snyder, who was killed in a car accident that also caused star Dany Heatley to end his Atlanta career, is the strongest memory many Thrashers fans have of the team's time in Atlanta -- to sever that while honoring players who never actually played for the franchise would cross the line from unfortunate to disrespectful.
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