The Jets announced that they have activated center David Gustafsson from injured reserve. They had a pair of open roster spots after assigning Nikita Chibrikov and Dylan Coghlan to AHL Manitoba on Thursday.
Gustafsson, 24, had missed the last four games while in concussion protocol. The 2018 second-round pick left his last appearance, a Dec. 10 trouncing of the Bruins, after fighting Boston forward Trent Frederic. It was his second appearance since Oct. 20 after sitting out most of the season as a healthy scratch.
Last year, he stuck primarily on the NHL roster for the second season in a row aside from a brief conditioning assignment in February. He scored three goals, his first since notching his first NHL marker in 2019-20, and added four assists for seven points with a +1 rating in 39 games. He averaged 9:16 per game and won a career-best 54.6% of his faceoffs, often skating down the middle of Winnipeg’s fourth line when in the lineup.
Gustafsson has now appeared in parts of six NHL seasons, skating in a top-level contest in every season since arriving in North America in 2019. He’s played sparingly in all of them, though, averaging 19 appearances per season and just 8:44 per game. The 6’2″ pivot has been a relative non-factor offensively, averaging only 10 points per 82 games. The Jets have also rarely controlled the puck in Gustafsson’s even strength minutes, posting a 45.9% shot-attempt share and 41.9% expected goals share throughout his career.
With a fully healthy forward lineup tonight against the Wild, Gustafsson will return to his usual seat in the press box, the team said. He’s the 13th forward on the active roster and will be the first player to enter the lineup if an injury strikes, however.