Benjamin Hatskin (September 30, 1917 – October 18, 1990) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

businessman and the founder of 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 ...

Early life and education

Ben Hatskin was born in 1917 in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

to Russian-Jewish parents. As a standout football player in high school, he became one of the first Canadian students to win an

athletic scholarship An athletic scholarship is a form of scholarship to attend a college or university or a private high school awarded to an individual based predominantly on his or her ability to play in a sport. Athletic scholarships are common in the United Stat ...

to an American university. He played football for the Sooners at the

University of Oklahoma The University of Oklahoma (OU) is a Public university, public research university in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it had existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two Territories became the state of Oklahom ...

. He also played junior hockey in Winnipeg with the 1936 Kildonan Stars. In 1936, Hatskin signed with the

Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a professional Canadian football team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Blue Bombers compete in the Canadian Football League (CFL) as a member club of the league's West division. They play their home games at IG Fiel ...

of the

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

, playing six years and helping the team win Grey Cup championships in 1939 and 1941.

Business career

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

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 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 ...

franchise during the league's expansion. His bid failed, which fueled his desire to help create a new, rival league, the

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) ...

, 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 of

Bobby Hull Robert Marvin Hull OC (born January 3, 1939) is a Canadian former ice hockey player who is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. His blonde hair, skating speed, end-to-end rushes, and ability to shoot the puck at very high veloc ...

for his team, the

, 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 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 ...

s in

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

, 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 with Hatskin selling the Jets to Barry Shenkarow. The club later relocated to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

and became the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

following the 1995-96 season.

Honours

The

Ben Hatskin Trophy The Ben Hatskin Trophy was presented annually to the World Hockey Association's best goaltender. It was named in honour of Ben Hatskin, who founded the Winnipeg Jets. Ben Hatskin Trophy winners were: *1973 – Gerry Cheevers, Cleveland Cru ...

given to the WHA's best goaltender was named in his honour. In 2010, he was elected as an inaugural inductee into the

World Hockey Association Hall of Fame The World Hockey Association Hall of Fame is an independent organization dedicated to honoring the World Hockey Association (WHA) which operated from 1972 to 1979 as a major professional ice hockey league. Officially partnered with the United Stat ...

in the builders category. He was also a member of the

Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame The Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum is a Canadian museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, dedicated to honoring the history and achievements of sports in Manitoba. The organization began in 1980, and then opened a museum in The Forks in 1993. Afte ...

References

External links

"14. Ben Hatskin," 100 Things Jets Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die, By Jon Waldman and Dave Babych, 2015
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hatskin, Ben 1917 births 1990 deaths 20th-century Canadian businesspeople Canadian people of Russian-Jewish descent Canadian players of American football Jewish Canadian sportspeople Jewish ice hockey players Ice hockey people from Winnipeg Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame inductees Players of Canadian football from Manitoba Oklahoma Sooners football players University of Oklahoma alumni Winnipeg Blue Bombers players Winnipeg Jets (1972–1996) executives