- Ben Hatskin
Benjamin Hatskin (born
September 29 ,1917 inWinnipeg ,Manitoba ,Canada ) was a Canadian businessman and the founder of theWinnipeg Jets .Early Life and Education
Ben Hatskin was born in 1917 in Winnipeg to Russian parents. As a standout football player in high school, he became one of the first Canadian students to win an
athletic scholarship to an American university. He played football for the Sooners at theUniversity of Oklahoma . However, due toWorld War II , Ben'scollege football career was cut short, and so he returned to Winnipeg and joined theWinnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL.Business career
During
World War II Hatskin began raising racehorses and his wealth grew as the Hatskin family invested in everything from lumber companies to juke box distributorships.Winnipeg Jets
In 1967 Ben Hatskin tried to win a
National Hockey League franchise during the league's expansion. His bid failed, which fueled his desire to participate in a new, rival league, theWorld Hockey Association , in 1972. Hatskin knew that the credibility of the WHA depended on getting established hockey stars to join its teams. He aggressively sought out the services ofBobby Hull for his team, theWinnipeg Jets , and eventually signed Hull to a contract estimated to be worth at least $1.75 million.Although it was one of the more successful teams in the WHA, winning 3
Avco Cup s in 1976, 1978 and 1979. Hatskin had to ask for a public subsidy to keep the financially troubled Jets alive after 1974.The team was absorbed into the NHL in 1979 and was purchased by
Barry Shenkarow . At the end of the 1995 season Shenkarow sold the team to a consortium of Minneapolis businessmen, including re-insurerSteven Gluckstern and Dr.Richard Burke , whose fortune came fromHMO 's, who ended up moving the team to Phoenix, where it was renamed thePhoenix Coyotes . A few years later, hockey legendWayne Gretzky bought an interest in the team and became theirgeneral manager and later head coach.Trivia
*The
Ben Hatskin Trophy given to the WHA's best goaltender was named in his honour.
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