The 1980–81 Winnipeg Jets season was the

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, pl ...

' second season in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

. In the 1980-81 season they finished fifth (and last) in the

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

Smythe Division The NHL's Smythe Division was formed in 1974 as part of the Clarence Campbell Conference. The division existed for 19 seasons until 1993. It was named in honour of Conn Smythe, who was a longtime owner, general manager, and head coach in the league ...

. The team scored 246 goals and conceded 400 goals. The Jets won 9 games, lost 57 games and tied 14 games. They scored 32 points. The Jets were coached by

Tom McVie Thomas McVie (born June 6, 1935) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey coach in the National Hockey League. McVie grew up in a poor family, and, upon signing his first junior league contract, is said to have left home with a single used st ...

(1 win, 20 losses and 7 ties), Bill Sutherland (6 wins, 20 losses and 3 ties), and Mike Smith (2 wins, 17 losses and 4 ties).

Offseason

The Jets named

Morris Lukowich Morris Eugene Lukowich (born June 1, 1956) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He was a member of the Winnipeg Jets of the World Hockey Association (WHA) and the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1976 to 1985, and later played fo ...

as team captain during the off-season, as former captain

Lars-Erik Sjöberg Lars-Erik "Taxen" Sjöberg (4 May 1944 in Falun, Sweden – 20 October 1987 in Uppsala, Sweden) was a Swedish ice hockey defenceman. He played in Sweden from 1962 to 1974 (Leksands IF 1962–65 and 1967–69, Djurgårdens IF Hockey 1965–67, a ...

announced his retirement at the end of the 1979-80 season. Lukowich had been with Winnipeg since their final season in the WHA, helping the club win the

Avco Cup The Avco World Trophy, also known as the Avco Cup, is the playoff championship trophy of the defunct World Hockey Association (1972–1979). The trophy's naming rights were sold to the former Avco Corporation (a name originally derived from "Avia ...

in 1979. On June 11, 1980, Winnipeg selected defenseman

Dave Babych David Michael Babych (born May 23, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played 19 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He is currently an assistant director of player personnel with the Vancouver Canucks. He p ...

with the second overall pick in the

1980 NHL Entry Draft The 1980 NHL Entry Draft was the 18th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the Montreal Forum. This was the first time that an NHL arena hosted the draft.The Montreal Canadiens:100 Years of Glory, D'Arcy Jenish, p.241, Published in Canada by Doubleda ...

. Babych was a high scoring defenseman with the

Portland Winterhawks The Portland Winterhawks are a junior ice hockey team based in Portland, Oregon, playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL), one of three leagues making up the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). Prior to the 2021-22 season, the Winterhawks split thei ...

of the WHL, recording 22 goals and 82 points in 50 games with Portland. With their second pick, the Jets selected Moe Mantha from the

Toronto Marlboros The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated junior ice hockey and senior ice hockey teams in the Ontario Hockey Association and later the Ontario Hockey League. The Marlboros ...

of the

OMJHL In 1970, the Junior A level was divided into two more levels, Tier I (Major Junior A) and Tier II (Minor Junior A). In 1974, the "Major Junior A" division of the OHA became the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL) and began to operate indepe ...

, and in the seventh round, the team selected

Brian Mullen Brian Patrick Mullen (born March 16, 1962) is an American former professional ice hockey player who spent eleven seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) playing for the Winnipeg Jets, New York Rangers, San Jose Sharks, and New York Islanders ...

from the

United States national ice hockey team United States national hockey team may refer to: * United States men's national ball hockey team * United States women's national ball hockey team * United States men's national field hockey team * United States women's national field hockey tea ...

. Winnipeg made a few small trades during the off-season, most notably acquiring

Rick Bowness Richard Gary Bowness (born January 25, 1955) is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player who is the head coach of the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Bowness played right wing for the Atlanta Flames, Detroit R ...

from the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the s ...

in exchange for

Craig Norwich Craig Richard Norwich (born December 15, 1955) is an American former professional ice hockey player. Norwich led the Edina East High School hockey team to the prestigious Minnesota State High School League Hockey Tournament three times, including ...

. The Jets also acquired

Norm Dupont Normand Joseph Gilles Dupont (born February 5, 1957) is a Canadian retired ice hockey forward (ice hockey), forward. As a youth, he played in the 1970 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Montréal-Nord ...

from the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

for the Jets second round pick in the

1982 NHL Entry Draft The 1982 NHL Entry Draft was the 20th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 252 players eligible for entry into professional ranks, in the reverse order of the 1981 ...

. Dupont was selected by the Canadiens in the first round of the 1977 NHL amateur draft, however, he picked up only a goal and four points in 35 games with Montreal in the 1979-80 season.

Regular season

Final standings

Record vs. opponents

Schedule and results

Playoffs

For the second straight season, the Jets failed to qualify for the playoffs, as they had an

worst record of 9-57-14, earning 32 points, 39 points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs for the final playoff position.

Player statistics

Regular season

;Scoring ;Goaltending

Awards and records

Transactions

Trades

Waivers

Free agents

Draft picks

Winnipeg selected the following players at the

, which was held at the

Montreal Forum Montreal Forum (french: Le Forum de Montréal) is a historic building located facing Cabot Square in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Called "the most storied building in hockey history" by ''Sporting News'', it was an indoor arena which served as the h ...

Montreal, Quebec Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pea ...

on June 11, 1980.

NHL Amateur Draft

Farm teams

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:1980-81 Winnipeg Jets Season 1980–81 NHL season by team, Winnipeg Jets season, 1980-81 Winnipeg Jets (1972–1996) seasons

Winn Winn may refer to: Places In the United States: * Winn, Maine, a town in Penobscot County * Winn, Michigan, an unincorporated community * Winn Parish, Louisiana Other uses * Winn (surname) (including a list of people with the name) * WINN, an ...

Offseason

Regular season

Final standings

Record vs. opponents

Schedule and results

Playoffs

Player statistics

Regular season

Awards and records

Transactions

Trades

Waivers

Free agents

Draft picks

NHL Amateur Draft

Farm teams

See also

References

External links