From the archive: Winnipeg Jets rookies take on Saskatoon Blades in 1990 preseason clash

In 1990, the Saskatoon Blades took on some fierce competition, but the toughest opponent was likely a squad of players who had already reached the NHL.

That year, the Winnipeg Jets held their training camp in Saskatoon.

At the time, the Bridge City was considered by a few to be a potential candidate for a possible NHL team, so the 90s saw some training camps, pre-season games and even some regular season games held at SaskTel Centre.

CTV Saskatoon recently found rare footage in our archives of an exhibition game involving a squad of Winnipeg Jets rookies taking on the Saskatoon Blades.

The Blades roster for this one also included a few U of S Huskies hockey players, while the Jets had younger talent in Kris Draper, Stu Barnes, Craig Martin and Sergei Kharin.

The Jets went on to overwhelm the Blades 10-3.

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“Neither coach was able to learn much about their respective teams,” local reporter Craig Wilson said in his recap of the game at the time.

Perhaps it was a bit of foreshadowing, as the Saskatoon Blades struggled that season, finishing 29-41-2 and missing the playoffs.

The Winnipeg Jets also failed to make the playoffs that season, going 26-43-11.

Still, it was a rare sight for fans to see a team wearing NHL colors on one side with their hometown Blades on the other.