Sometimes special moments in hockey don’t always come with fireworks. There’s no huge celebration, no dramatic overtime winner, no headline that screams for attention. In this case, it was just a player stepping onto the ice for another game. And, in doing so, making history.
It happened Thursday night when Scheifele hit his 951st game with the Jets. That pushed him past Thomas Steen into the franchise record for most games played for Winnipeg.
Who Did Scheifele Pass for His Jets’ Franchise Record?
Anyone familiar with Jets history knows Scheifele passed Thomas Steen for the record. Steen was the soul of the original Winnipeg Jets for 14 seasons. He played 950 games, scored 264 goals, added 553 assists for 817 points, and never played for any other NHL team — just the Jets through and through.
Steen was exactly the type of player the Jets needed back in those days. He wasn’t the flashiest guy in the league, but to the city of Winnipeg, he meant everything. He lived through those long Manitoba winter nights, brutal road trips, bruises, endless practices, back-to-backs, playoff heartbreaks, and all the daily grind that comes with being the face of the franchise for over a decade. That 950-game mark isn’t really about highlight-reel stuff — it’s about loyalty, toughness, and just showing up day after day, year after year.
So when someone passes a player like Steen, it’s not another number in a media guide. This one feels like the key player of one era handing the torch to the key player of another.