Having reached their limits in regards to their recent goaltending troubles, the Winnipeg Jets have decided to turn back the clock in net. The team announced today that they have recalled veteran goalie Ondrej Pavelec from the AHL’s Manitoba Moose, returning to the man who held the starter position for the organization for years prior to 2016-17. For now, the team will carry three goalies as it tries to right the ship this season, starting with getting better results from it’s keepers.
When the Jets placed Pavelec on waivers ahead of the start of the 2016-17 season and then subsequently sent him down to the AHL, it marked the end of an era for the team, or so we thought. Pavelec was a 2005 second-round pick of the Atlanta Thrashers, who worked his way up through the organization and made his NHL debut just two years later in 2007-08. By 2009-10, Pavelec was the Thrashers’ starter and remained as such through the move to Winnipeg. It was not until last season, when backup Michael Hutchinson was outplaying him and young Connor Hellebuyck began fighting for play time that Pavelec’s role began to decrease. The rise of Hutchinson had been apparent, as the young goalie had been very impressive in just a few starts in 2013-14 and then posted a .914 save percentage and 2.39 goals against average in 38 games as a rookie in 2014-15. Hellebuyck’s ascent was equally predictable, as he was one of the Jets’ top prospects coming out of UMass-Lowell and showed nothing but promise early on in his pro career. Making the decision to move on from Pavelec was even easier for Winnipeg when considering his body of work. Although the Czech keeper had been the top option in goal for six straight years heading into this season, his career has been far from high-quality. Only once, in 2014-15, has Pavelec finished with a save percentage above .915 and a goals against average above 2.70. Those are barely even replacement-level numbers for an NHL goalie. Then, in 2014-15, when Pavelec looked to be taking the the step toward stardom by posting a .920 SV% and 2.28 GAA and helping the Jets earn a playoff berth, he collapsed in the postseason, allowing 15 goals in a quick four-game sweep. Without a history of success, the team’s ties to it’s former starter were not all that strong to begin with.
The choice to go with Hellebuyck and Hutchison and send Pavelec packing this season was one that faced almost no scrutiny. The Jets top priority was (and still is) the development of their young goalies, particularly Hellebuyck, and an expensive veteran with poor numbers like Pavelec was simply not needed… until now. The play of the Jets’ current duo has been costing the team wins of late. Hellebuyck has a .907 SV% and 2.82 GAA in 34 games this season and has looked especially tired and sloppy recently, having been pulled in back-to-back starts, while Hutchison has done a complete turnaround from just two years ago, with an .894 SV% and 3.23 GAA in 20 games as one of the league’s worst goalies in 2016-17. Meanwhile in Manitoba, Pavelec has been putting up numbers that match his career output, which is to say he’s been just okay. In 18 games with the Moose, Pavelec has 8 wins, a .917 SV%, and a 2.78 GAA. However, it’s easy to believe that the 29-year-old, who is still collecting pay on the final year of his five-year, $19.5MM deal signed back in 2012, has not been putting in a full effort in the minors and could potentially improve in his return to the NHL. Winnipeg certainly hopes so, as they need the veteran to stop the bleeding and give their other options some rest. Despite being on a four-game losing streak and without a winning streak of more than two games all season long, the Jets are tied with the Dallas Stars for fifth in the Central Division and are still within reach of a playoff spot if they can turn their season around in the second half.
To make room for Pavelec on the roster, and rather than expose Hutchison to waivers, the Jets also announced that they have placed defenseman Ben Chiarot on waivers. Chiarot sustained an upper body injury last week and has yet to play since. The move opens up a roster space, at least while he recovers, so that the Jets can sort out how they want to balance having three goalies on the roster. The practice has not worked out well for teams like the Calgary Flames and New York Islanders in recent years, but Winnipeg hopes depth in net is the key to all of their problems.