ATLANTA — Fans of the Atlanta Thrashers are stopping by a downtown sports bar to mourn the loss of the team to Winnipeg, Manitoba.
A coffin with a mock Thrashers player was set up outside Stats Sports Bar along with a bagpipe player playing funeral music to welcome fans, according to Channel 2's Ryan Young.
The sports bar was offering free food for fans to celebrate the team "moving on" to their new home in Canada, Young said.
Young talked to fans outside the bar, including former Atlanta Flames player Tim Ecclastone.
Ecclastone told Young, "I really believe it was the location of the arena and the way the team was built. I think they could have improved on the way the team was built as well."
The announcement came after weeks of speculation the Thrashers' owners, Atlanta Spirit LLC, wanted to sell the team after racking up $130 million in losses in the past seven years.
The deal is worth a reported $170 million, which includes a $60 million relocation fee that will be split by the league's franchises.
The relocation is pending approval by the NHL Board of Governors. A vote on the deal is expected at a meeting on June 21.