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In Hartford, Whalers are gone but fan support lives on

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  • Members of the National Hockey League Hartford Whalers salute the fans at the end of their final game in Hartford, Conn., with the Tampa Bay Lightning Sunday, April 13, 1997. The team is daparting the city after 22 years. The owners have not revealed where the team will move to. (AP Photo/Steve Miller)
    Steve Miller/Associated Press
    The Hartford Whalers played their final game in Hartford, Conn., on April 13, 1997, after an 18-year run in that city.
  • FROM MERLIN ARCHIVE DO NOT RESEND TO LIBRARY Hartford Whalers captain Kevin Dineen waves to the fans Sunday, April 13, 1997, after he briefly addressed them at the end of the Whalers final game in Hartford, Conn. The Whalers defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 to end their season and their stay in Hartford. (AP Photo/Richard Mei) Library Tag 08102008 Sports
    Richard Mei/Associated Press
    Whalers captain Kevin Dineen addressed the fans after the team's final game at the Hartford Civic Center.
  • Hartford Whalers' goalie Sean Burke clears a shot by Tampa Bay Lightning's Brantt Myhres in the first period of the last game ever for the Hartford Whalers. The team is leaving Hartford for an unknown destination. Hartford's Kevin Haller comes in at right . (AP Photo/Bob Child)
    Bob Child/Associated Press
    Goalie Sean Burke and the Whalers went out winners, beating the Tampa Bay Lightning in their final game in Hartford.
  • 2-6-97:Boston: Hartford's Curtis Leschyshyn impedes the progress of the Bruins' Jean-Yves Roy by hanging on to his sweater.
    Jim Davis/Globe Staff
    In 18 seasons from 1979 to 1997, the Whalers went 534-709-177, including countless battles against their regional rivals from Boston.
  • Peter Karmanos owner of the NHL Hartford Whalers announced that he will be moving the Whalers out of Hartford to an undetermined city at the end of the season during a news conference at the Civic Center in Hartford, Conn., Wednesday, March 26, 1997. The Whalers will pay the state a $20.5 million penalty to leave after this season. (AP Photo/Richard Mei)
    Richard Mei/Associated Press
    Peter Karmanos bought the Whalers in 1994 for $47.4 million.
  • Kevin Dupont/Globe Staff
    The Hartford Wolf Pack, an AHL franchise in the New York Rangers' organization, began playing in Hartford in 1997.
  • Standing in the XL Center in Hartford, Conn.,, Howard Baldwin, former owner of the Hartford Whalers announced earlier this week that his sports marketing company, Whalers Sports and Entertainment, would take over the business operations of the AHL franchise, the Hartford Wolf Pack. The team will be renamed the Connecticut Whale before the end of the year and Baldwin has hopes that he can lure the NHL back to Connecticut. Photograph by Christopher Capozziello for The New York Times. NYTCREDIT: Christopher Capozziello for The New York Times Published 11-27-2010: Howard Baldwin, who once controlled the N.H.L. Whalers, runs the Rangers' A.H.L. affiliate in Hartford, which he renamed the Connecticut Whale. (Christopher Capozziello for The New York Times)
    Christopher Capozziello/New York Times
    Howard Baldwin, a former owner of the Hartford Whalers, took control of the Wolf Pack franchise in 2010 and ran the team as the Connecticut Whale until 2013.
  • Kevin Paul Dupont/Globe Staff
    The building once known as the Hartford Civic Center is now called the XL Center.
  • Kevin Paul Dupont
    The Whalers were often derided for playing "in a mall" because the entrances to the Hartford Civic Center were surrounded by shops and restaurants. Today, many are closed and the place is quiet when not hosting events.
  • West Hartford, CT. 08/11/10 Whalers merchandise is enjoying a revival of sorts as fans continue to purchase clothing and memorablia at places like Parade of Novelties Sports, the "Ulitame Fan Store" at the Westfarms Mall. Photo by Mike Townsend | FOX CT
    Mike Townsend/Fox CT
    While the Whalers have been gone for more than a decade, merchandise with the team's logo remains available and popular.
  • This is an image of a limited edition Hartford Whalers scratch ticket issued by the Connecticut State Lottery. The instant game launched in November 2013.
    The Connecticut Lottery even sells a Hartford Whalers scratch ticket.
  • EAST HARTFORD-8/14/10- There was a sea of Whlers jerseys and Whale logos everywhere you looked during the Whalers Fan Fest held at Rentschler Field on Saturday. An estimated 5,000 die-hard Hartford Whalers fans converged on the stadium to wait in line for hours to have the former Whalers players sign autographs. In photo,Skyler Calibey of West Hartford cheers as former Whalers players are introduced to the crowd. "Yes, I was alive when the Whalers were here, " he said. STEPHEN DUNN|sdunn@courant.com ORG XMIT: B58632784Z.1
    Stephen Dunn/Hartford Courant
    A contingent of diehard fans remains in Connecticut, and rallies and reunions, including this one in 2010, are held on a regular basis.
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