The Winnipeg Jets’ forward core is going to have several differences for their upcoming contest against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Winnipeg announced that they’ve activated forwards Morgan Barron and Cole Koepke from the injured reserve.
Additionally, the team shared that forwards Nikita Chibrikov, Parker Ford, and Brad Lambert had all been reassigned in a corresponding roster move. All three forwards were exempt from waivers, making it much easier to activate Barron and Koepke.
Barron has been out since the Jets welcomed back their captain, Adam Lowry, in early November. He had assumed the third-line center duties in Lowry’s absence, scoring three goals and six points in 12 games, averaging 12:33 of ice time per game.
The fact that Winnipeg can now safely play Barron on the fourth line is a credit to their bottom-six depth this season. Barron is a well-above-average defensive center, averaging a 93.3% on-ice save percentage at even strength throughout his time as a Jet, and a 50.5% success rate in the faceoff dot.
Joining Barron on the active roster will be Koepke, who may not immediately step back into the lineup. Fashioned as a fourth-line winger, Koepke had only tallied two assists in 14 games before going down with his undisclosed injury.
Still, he remains in the team lead for physicality with 40 hits (2.86 per game). Regardless, there’s no questioning that Koepke doesn’t have the offensive ceiling of veteran wingers Tanner Pearson and Gustav Nyquist, who are expected to play next to Barron on the fourth line tomorrow night.
Meanwhile, none of Chibrikov, Ford, or Lambert were overly impressive throughout their time on the Jets roster. Ford and Lambert led the way in scoring with one point in 11 games and four games, respectively, while Chibrikov went scoreless.
It stands to reason that the AHL’s Manitoba Moose will benefit from today’s move. The Moose are currently in fourth place in the Central Division with a 7-6-2-0 record, and have now added three top-six forwards back into the mix.