So I got the following comment on me previous post:

I am all for honoring the Whale part of the team’s history…something I wish the Canes would do more [of]…

There’s actually a two-word answer to this:

They can’t.

They can’t honor the team’s history very much, because of Pete Karmanos and that wonderful temper of his. The guy was in such a hurry to flee Hartford that he signed an exit agreement that not only dinged him to the tune of a few bills, but also gave up all rights to everything to do with the Whalers–the logo, the uniform designs, the 1986 Adams Division banner, and pretty much everything else (except, I think for “Brass Bonanza”). Everything Whalers that’s been shown by the team has been stuff that’s owned by the NHL–old video clips, file photos, and so on.

Does Uncle Pete regret it? I think so. He’s commented that he liked the old Whalers color scheme (and, frankly, so did I–green is one of my favourite colours), and hinted that he didn’t like having to give it all up–of course, my question is “If you didn’t like giving it up, then why did you?”

In a nutshell, there’s no going home again for this team–which makes me sad, because if there’s one thing I hate it’s a needlessly burned bridge.