The offseason is in full flight with the draft and free agency fast approaching. We continue our series which examines what those eliminated teams need to accomplish over the coming weeks and months. Next up is a look at Winnipeg.
This past season was an up and down one for Winnipeg. At times, they were good enough to contend for the top spot in the North Division and others where they struggled considerably. Things followed a similar pattern in the playoffs as they swept Edmonton before being swept by Montreal. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has one of the cleaner cap situations in the league at his disposal this summer, giving him an opportunity to reshape his roster. One priority stands out amongst the rest, however.
Add Impact Defensive Help
Let’s not bother with delaying the obvious. The back end has been an issue for the last two years after Winnipeg lost Jacob Trouba (trade), Tyler Myers and Ben Chiarot (free agency), and Dustin Byfuglien (injury and eventual contract termination). They have two proven players in Josh Morrissey and Neal Pionk (part of the return for Trouba) but the depth takes a hit from there. Dylan DeMelo is a capable third pairing player, Nathan Beaulieu is serviceable depth, and Logan Stanley and Ville Heinola have some upside but are unproven.
As they’ve found out, that combination isn’t the makings of a top-level defense or even a league-average one. Cheveldayoff has made moves to try to raise the floor and add depth in the past two seasons since then with the pickup and re-signing of DeMelo last season, the signing of Derek Forbort (a pending UFA again this summer), and the trade deadline add of Jordie Benn this year but that isn’t going to drastically change their fortunes. Frankly, the Jets could benefit from trying to do that again this summer but that alone can’t the only upgrades made.
At least one top-four defender needs to be added to the mix. That would take some pressure off Morrissey and Pionk while also allowing Stanley and Heinola to continue to be eased in. Unfortunately, there aren’t a lot of impact blueliners available in free agency; you can probably count the number of top-four defenders on one hand. But with only $61MM in commitments for next season, they’ll have the ability to be a high bidder on those players if they want to go that way. Otherwise, it’ll have to come by a trade.
After failing to land an impact rearguard last summer, Cheveldayoff simply cannot strike out on that front again if he intends to see Winnipeg take a step forward next season.
Re-Sign RFAs
The Jets don’t have many restricted free agents to contend with this summer but they have two notable ones that will need to be addressed fairly quickly as both are eligible for salary arbitration.
The biggest one is Pionk. He really took off following the trade from the Rangers and got better when pressed into a bigger role. Going back to his USHL and college days, there has always been some offensive upside for Pionk and he has shown that since joining the Jets, collecting 77 points in 125 games. The timing couldn’t have been better as he now becomes eligible for a hearing for the first time. With two years away from UFA eligibility, the time has come for a long-term contract. Considering how much they’ve lost from their back end in recent years and how important Pionk has become, it’s likely that Cheveldayoff will push for a deal that buys out several UFA years. That could push his price tag close to double the $3MM AAV on his bridge contract but it’d be a price well worth paying to give them some stability.
The other is Andrew Copp who is basically Winnipeg’s Swiss army knife. He can play in a checking role and has shown that for several years. He has been called upon to play higher in the lineup at times as well and responded to that request by setting new career highs offensively across the board despite the pandemic-shortened season. He’s a natural center but spent a lot of time in 2020-21 on the wing. Role and positional flexibility is an ideal combination to have combined with the uptick in offense. He’s well-positioned to earn well over his $2.3MM qualifying offer and since he’s only a year from UFA eligibility, Copp could simply elect arbitration and go to a hearing which is what he did last time. They locked up Adam Lowry before the deadline on a long-term deal and will try to do the same with his linemate now.
Rebuild The Bottom Six
Winnipeg’s top five forwards are all either signed or under team control for at least the next three years so they’re pretty well set there although Paul Stastny will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the month. However, they have a trio of bottom-six forwards that are set to hit the open market in Mathieu Perreault, Nate Thompson, and Trevor Lewis. The latter two were added last summer to add some grit and penalty killing acumen but Perreault has been a versatile piece for the Jets for the last seven years.
This is another opportunity for Cheveldayoff to shore up the bottom of his roster. Kristian Vesalainen and David Gustafsson are internal candidates for a regular role and with both on entry-level contracts, they’d be cheap enough for Winnipeg to afford to take a run at another top-six piece and strengthen their attack. Alternatively, if they opt to replace all of those players with free agents, they’ll again benefit from the flat salary cap and an environment where teams will be trying to go cheaper with role players; they’ll be well-positioned to bid a bit higher on each one which should give them a leg up in those discussions.
Fill The Backup Goalie Spot
The decision to bring back Laurent Brossoit for this season was a little curious considering how much the 28-year-old struggled in 2019-20 but Winnipeg’s faith in him was rewarded as he bounced back with a 2.42 GAA and a .918 SV% this season, numbers that were actually slightly better than Connor Hellebuyck’s. That could have Brossoit primed for a bigger deal in free agency, a pricier one than they may want to pay.
With Hellebuyck in the fold for three more years and a proven ability to log a lot of minutes, the Jets can afford to shop on the less expensive side of free agency, freeing up some extra cap flexibility elsewhere. Brossoit made $1.5MM this season and that’s likely the price range that Cheveldayoff will want to keep his second netminder. If Brossoit isn’t open to that deal this time around, there will be a change made between the pipes this summer.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.
