NHL All-Star Weekend gets visit from Jets jersey honoring late fan

TAMPA -- The Winnipeg Jets have a third representative at the 2018 GEICO NHL All-Star Weekend.

RELATED: [Late Jets fan being honored in traveling jersey tribute]
The traveling Jets jersey bearing the name of Carter Jansen was at Amalie Arena on Saturday for the 2018 GEICO NHL All-Star Skills Competition, which also featured Jets forward Blake Wheeler and goalie Connor Hellebuyck.
The jersey, in honor of Jansen, who died in a car accident at age 21 on May 19, 2016, has been passed around the League by fans, with the goal of getting it to every NHL arena this season.
It was Adrian D'Souza's turn Saturday, and he made the most of it, taking the jersey to the Gasparilla Pirate Festival in Tampa and posing for a photo with the Stanley Cup.
"I read an article about the jersey and had to get involved," said D'Souza, 41.
The idea for the traveling jersey came from Graeme Fortlage, who became friends with Jansen in 2008 while playing Xbox Live with him remotely. Living about nine hours apart by car, they met in person once but often discussed and debated the Jets while talking through the video game system.

When Jansen made plans to enroll at the University of Regina, three hours closer to Winnipeg, the friends worked out a plan for him to attend the Jets' season opener at home with Fortlage in October. It would have been Jansen's first NHL game.
The jersey has been to 19 NHL arenas this season; Saturday marked its second visit to Amalie Arena, but it almost didn't make it.
D'Souza, who lives in Saint Cloud, Florida, about 90 miles from Tampa, said he didn't get the jersey, which was shipped from a fan in San Jose, until Friday. He had to hurry but was able to get the 2018 Honda NHL All-Star Game patch put on the jersey.
He will be back at Amalie Arena on Sunday for the 2018 Honda NHL All-Star Game (3:30 p.m. ET; NBC, CBC, SN, TVA Sports).
"The jersey had already been to Amalie Arena," D'Souza said, "but I told [Graeme] I wanted to bring it to the All-Star Game."