Little signed a one-day contract to retire as a member of the Winnipeg Jets on Oct. 20, 2024. At the time he was second in Jets/Atlanta Thrashers history in games played (843), third in assists (304) and fourth in points (521). He also played the first 27 Stanley Cup Playoff games after the franchise relocated from Atlanta and had 12 points (four goals, eight assists).

Most everything about Little as a hockey player failed to garner much attention. Everything except his consistent reliability everywhere on the ice.

The Thrashers' first-round pick (No. 12) in the 2006 NHL Draft, Little combined solid playmaking ability, sound defensive instincts, a decent shot and average skating with a tremendous work ethic that elevates everything else about him.

A consummate team player, he became the first two-time winner of the Jets/Thrashers' Dan Snyder Memorial Award after the 2013-14 season. The award, given to a player who "best embodies perseverance, dedication and hard work without reward or recognition, so that his team and teammates might succeed," also went to Little after the 2010-11 season.

By that time, the Edmonton native had established himself as a bona fide player. As a 19-year-old rookie playing his first NHL game, Little wasted no time inscribing his name in the franchise record book. Little's second-period goal in Atlanta's season opener Oct. 5, 2007, made him the first player in Jets/Thrashers history to score a goal in his NHL debut.

After shuttling between Chicago of the American Hockey League and the Thrashers during his rookie year, Little arrived in the NHL for good the next season. During the 2008-09 season, Little finished second on the Thrashers with 31 goals, tied for the team lead with 12 power-play goals and ranked third with four game-winning goals.

Little's first NHL hat trick, Dec. 26, 2008, against the Carolina Hurricanes, came after a two-goal effort in Atlanta's previous game against the New York Islanders. Single goals in the Thrashers' next two games gave him seven goals over a four-game span. The strong second year earned Little a spot in the 2009 NHL YoungStars Game.

The relocation to Winnipeg for the 2011-12 season let Little realize a long-held dream to play for a Canada-based NHL team. Little, who after the move switched from No. 10 to No. 18 out of respect for Jets legend Dale Hawerchuk, fulfilled another dream with his first NHL playoff appearance in 2015. Winnipeg played the Anaheim Ducks in the first round, and Little led the Jets with two goals and tied for the team lead with three points in the series.

Little scored his 200th NHL goal against the Chicago Blackhawks on March 29, 2018, and he was the fifth member of the 2006 NHL Draft class to reach 500 points when he scored what proved to be the game-winning goal against the Detroit Red Wings on Jan. 11, 2019. He played all 82 games that season but was limited to seven in 2019-20 after sustaining a concussion during the preseaso. He then was struck in the side of the head by a shot Nov. 5, and missed the entire 56-game 2020-21 season.

The Jets traded Little to the Arizona Coyotes on March 21, 2022, for a fourth-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. He was then transferred to the Utah Hockey Club by Arizona on June 13, 2024.