ED SWEENEY MEMORIAL AWARD RECIPIENT - GEOFF KIRBYSON
The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame is pleased to present Geoff Kirbyson with an Ed Sweeney Memorial Award for his excellent The Hot Line: How the Legendary Trio of Hull, Hedberg and Nilsson Transformed Hockey and Led the Winnipeg Jets to Greatness.
Kirbyson's work tells the story of how the Winnipeg Jets line of Bobby Hull, Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson came together and formed one of the most exciting and dominant lines hockey has ever seen.
When Anders Hedberg, Bobby Hull and Ulf Nilsson took to the ice they created a dynamic line that propelled the Winnipeg Jets to two World Hockey Association championships. Their chemistry on the ice and impact on the game is explored in The Hot Line: How the Legendary Trio of Hull, Hedberg and Nilsson Transformed Hockey and Led the Winnipeg Jets to Greatness.
"Being a history buff, it's an honour to receive the Ed Sweeney Memorial Award. I believe The Hot Line era was an important part of Manitoba's hockey history and without the ground-breaking style of play from Bobby Hull, Ulf Nilsson, Anders Hedberg and their teammates, Winnipeg wouldn't have entered the NHL in 1979 and certainly wouldn't have been readmitted in 2011. These three were trailblazers in every sense on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean and Winnipeggers probably didn't appreciate how great they were until they were gone." - Geoff Kirbyson
GEOFF KIRBYSON is a veteran journalist with over 20 years experience. He has spent most of his career at the Winnipeg Free Press while also contributing to Canadian Business Magazine, The Hockey News and
numerous trade publications. He has coached minor hockey for many years and is a stay-at-home defenceman on The Sofa Kings in a Winnipeg beer league. He remembers the roar of the Winnipeg Arena crowd as a nine-year-old when The Hot Line jumped over the boards.