Winnipeg has had two NHL teams called the Jets, and their clothes tell you which one you are looking at almost instantly. The first wore bright royal blue, red and white, with a little jet plane streaking across a hockey stick. The second, which arrived in 2011, wears navy, aviator blue and silver, with a roundel inspired by the Royal Canadian Air Force. Between them sits a fifteen-year gap when the city had no NHL team at all, and that gap is a large part of why vintage Winnipeg Jets clothing means so much to the people who wear it.
For collectors across Canada, this is one of the richest stories in vintage NHL apparel. It runs from a rebel league and a million-dollar signing to a playoff tradition that turned a whole arena white, to a painful departure, and finally to a homecoming. Each chapter left its own clothing behind.
01. The WHA and Bobby Hull
The Jets were founded in 1972 as one of the charter teams of the World Hockey Association, a rival league set up to challenge the NHL. Their first major move was signing Bobby Hull away from Chicago with a contract that made headlines across North America. Hull's arrival gave the new league credibility overnight, and Winnipeg became one of its strongest franchises.
The WHA Jets were also early adopters of European talent. Swedish players such as Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson played alongside Hull, and the team's fast, open style won Avco Cup championships in the second half of the seventies. Clothing from these years is scarce and highly collected: pennants, knit toques, crests, and the occasional jersey or jacket. If you ever find genuine WHA-era Jets gear, look after it carefully.
The WHA's own aesthetic was a little more adventurous than the NHL's at the time, with bold colours and unusual designs across the league. For Winnipeg, though, the look was fairly classic, built on blue, red and white, which carried straight into the next chapter.
02. Into the NHL with a plane and a stick
When the WHA merged with the NHL in 1979, Winnipeg was one of four teams to join the older league. The Jets' logo of that era, a jet aircraft flying over a hockey stick with the team name, became one of the most beloved in the sport. It is simple, slightly cartoonish and instantly readable, the kind of design that looks just as good on a toque as on a jersey crest.
The NHL Jets of the eighties and early nineties had strong players, notably Dale Hawerchuk, who arrived as a teenager and became the face of the franchise, and later Teemu Selanne, whose rookie season in the early nineties set a goal-scoring record for first-year players that still stands. Thomas Steen spent his entire career with the club and became a fan favourite. Their numbers, 10, 8 and 25, are the most common on vintage player gear.
Look for blue home or white road jerseys in replica cuts, nylon coach's jackets, crewneck sweatshirts with large chest crests, and knit toques with pompoms in team colours. The team refreshed its uniforms in the early nineties, so you may notice differences in shade and striping between eighties and nineties pieces.
Jackets from this era deserve special attention, because they suit the climate they were made for. Satin bombers with quilted linings, heavier wool-bodied varsity jackets and nylon pullovers with fleece insides all turn up. Open them up and check the lining seams, then work the snaps. On wool bodies, look for moth holes, which often hide under the collar and along the back of the neck. Ribbed trims with blue, red and white stripes should still look crisp rather than wavy, since sagging cuffs are difficult to restore.
A city that loses its team does not stop wearing the jersey. It just wears it with more feeling.
03. The Whiteout
One of the most famous traditions in Canadian hockey began in Winnipeg in the late eighties: fans dressing entirely in white for playoff games, creating what became known as the Whiteout. The effect, a whole arena glowing white under the lights, was startling, and it has since been copied by other teams.
For collectors, the Whiteout means something specific. White tees, white jerseys and white sweatshirts from Jets playoff runs carry an extra layer of meaning. Practically, though, white is the hardest colour to keep in good condition. Check collars and underarms for yellowing, look carefully for faint spots across the chest, and hold the garment up to daylight before you decide. A small mark is often fine. A dingy overall cast is harder to fix, though gentle soaking can help.
When the new Jets arrived in 2011, the Whiteout returned with them, so white Jets clothing spans both eras. The logo usually tells you which one you are holding.
04. Leaving for Phoenix
In 1996, after years of financial difficulty in a small market with a weak Canadian dollar, the Jets moved to Phoenix and became the Coyotes. Their final home game in Winnipeg was an emotional night, and the departure left a deep mark on the city. The franchise's records and history went south with it.
The years without a team are, in a sense, when the original Jets became vintage. Fans held onto their jerseys and jackets and kept wearing them. Old-logo gear became a statement of loyalty to something that no longer existed, and that emotion helped keep the classic plane-and-stick logo alive long after it left the ice. Clothing from the final 1995-96 season is particularly poignant, though not always easy to identify without a commemorative print or patch.
05. 2011: the Jets come home
In 2011 the Atlanta Thrashers were sold and moved to Winnipeg, and after a public campaign the new team took the Jets name. The new identity drew on Canada's air force heritage, with a roundel-style logo featuring a jet in silver and navy against a red maple leaf, and a palette of navy, aviator blue and silver. It was a deliberate break from the old look, connecting to the city's aviation links while giving the new franchise its own personality.
The original logo did not disappear, though. The Jets wore throwback-style uniforms with the classic design at the Heritage Classic outdoor game in 2016, and have used the old look as an alternate since. That means old-logo merchandise exists from several periods: genuine eighties and nineties pieces, and newer heritage reissues. Both are worth owning, but they are different things.
06. Telling old from new
Because the classic logo has been reissued, it helps to know a few general clues. None of them proves age on its own, but together they tell a reasonable story.
- Tags. Eighties and nineties pieces often carry brands like CCM, Starter or various sweatshirt makers, with simple tags. Modern reissues usually have longer, multilingual care labels.
- Fabric. Older jerseys use heavier knits or early mesh; sweatshirts feel denser. Newer pieces tend to be lighter and smoother.
- Crests. Vintage crests are often stitched twill with a slightly irregular finish, while modern ones can be sublimated or heat-applied.
- Colour. An honestly faded royal blue with a soft red outline suggests real age; very crisp colour often means a newer piece.
- Wear. Pilling, softened ribbing and gentle fading should match the age the other clues suggest.
07. Wearing Jets blue in a Canadian winter
Jets clothing is built for the cold, and that is how it looks best. A royal blue crewneck under a navy or charcoal parka with dark jeans and boots is easy and warm. An old-logo toque instantly says Winnipeg without saying much else. A white Whiteout tee under a flannel shirt looks crisp and slightly nostalgic, especially with grey trousers.
Hockey jerseys are large by design, made to go over pads. Wear one as an outer layer over a long-sleeve tee or a slim hoodie, with straight or relaxed trousers and substantial footwear. If you want the jersey to look more deliberate and less like game-day wear, choose a smaller size than you think you need, so the hem sits at your hip and the sleeves end near your wrist.
Royal blue and red are strong together, so keep the rest of your outfit calm. Grey, black, cream and denim are reliable partners. Modern navy-era Jets gear is even easier to combine, since navy behaves almost like a neutral.
A bit of care keeps these pieces going. Wash jerseys and sweatshirts inside out in cold water and hang or lay them flat to dry, which protects stitched crests from puckering. Brush wool jackets after wearing and store them with cedar rather than in plastic. Snow and road salt are hard on everything, so let a damp jacket dry naturally at room temperature before it goes back in the closet.
08. Why these pieces matter
Vintage Winnipeg Jets clothing carries more than most team gear: a rebel league, a superstar's leap of faith, the first Whiteout, a heartbreak, and a return. That is why fans across Canada, from Manitoba to Ontario, still seek it out, and why the old plane-and-stick logo has outlived the team it was designed for.
If you find a piece that speaks to you, take the time to check its fabric, ribbing and crest, and decide whether you want the genuine article or a well-made reissue. Then wear it the way Winnipeg always has: proudly, through the coldest months, and without worrying too much about the occasional mark. Some histories are better carried than kept in a drawer.
