- The AHL affiliate of the Winnipeg Jets has added some strength at forward, signing C.J. Suess to a minor-league contract. This will be the second time Suess has featured in the Jets’ organization, playing for the team from 2017-2022. In his 166 games played for the Moose so far throughout his career, Suess has 45 goals and 38 assists.
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Jets Rumors
Winnipeg Jets Re-Sign Dylan Samberg
The Winnipeg Jets have reached an agreement with left-shot RFA defenseman Dylan Samberg on a two-year contract, as announced today. The deal carries an average annual value of $1.4MM, a healthy raise coming off his entry-level contract.
At the age of 24, Samberg earned his first full-time NHL roster spot in 2022-23, skating in 63 contests for the Jets. He contributed two goals and eight points, but his main value came without the puck on his stick – he was one of Winnipeg’s best shutdown defenders at even strength. The team’s 43rd overall pick in 2017, Samberg’s now accumulated 13 points (two goals and 11 assists) and 29 penalty minutes across his 78 career NHL games, all coming within the last two seasons.
Before joining the professional ranks, Samberg played three seasons for the University of Minnesota-Duluth from 2017 to 2020, winning two NCAA championships in the process. This season, he appeared in his first top-level men’s tournament for the United States at the 2023 World Championships, contributing four points (one goal and three assists) in 10 games en route to a fourth-place finish.
Samberg played just 14:55 per game last season, a number that’s sure to increase as he eats into the minutes of veteran Brenden Dillon on the left side. Samberg was also extremely useful on the penalty kill, and his pairings with either Dylan DeMelo and Nate Schmidt were often Winnipeg’s best at limiting chances against on any given night.
He’ll be a restricted free agent again in 2025, although he’ll be just one year out from UFA status at that time.
Winnipeg Jets Sign Domenic DiVincentiis
The Winnipeg Jets have signed prospect goaltender Domenic DiVincentiis to a three-year entry-level contract with an $858k AAV, per a team announcement.
DiVincentiis, 19, was a seventh-round pick of the Jets at the 2022 draft who has earned this entry-level deal on the back of an exceptional breakout 2022-23 campaign with the OHL’s North Bay Battalion. DiVincentiis went 36-9-2 with North Bay, posting a .919 save percentage and 2.33 goals-against-average. He also led North Bay to the OHL’s Conference Finals, posting a .926 save percentage in 20 postseason games.
His save percentage was the highest among all OHL netminders with at least 40 games played, and he led the OHL in both wins and shutouts. That highly successful campaign earned DiVincentiis a multitude of honors, including the OHL’s Goalie of the Year award, as well as a spot on the CHL’s Second All-Star Team.
As he won’t turn 20 until next March, DiVincentiis is slated for another season in the OHL with North Bay. With Connor Hellebuyck on an expiring contract, the Jets have made investments into the goalie position looking towards the future.
After drafting 2023 World Juniors Gold Medalist Thomas Milic last week, they’ve made another move: signing their most promising goalie prospect to his entry-level deal and rewarding him for an exceptional OHL campaign.
Winnipeg Jets Sign Axel Jonsson-Fjallby
The Winnipeg Jets are bringing back one of their players who hit the open market Saturday. Group VI UFA left wing Axel Jonsson-Fjallby is returning to the team on a two-year contract with an average annual value of $775K. Per the Jets, the deal is a two-way contract in 2023-24 and a one-way contract in 2024-25. PuckPedia adds his AHL salary this season will be $225K.
Winnipeg acquired Jonsson-Fjallby via waiver claim just before the beginning of the 2022-23 season. He went on to spend most of the season on the NHL roster, playing a career-high 50 games and recording six goals and 14 points in a fourth-line role.
Originally a 2016 fifth-round selection of the Washington Capitals, Jonsson-Fjallby’s only previous NHL experience came with them in 2021-22, scoring two goals and four points in 23 games. It came after Washington briefly lost him to the Buffalo Sabres in October 2021, also via a waiver claim, before the Capitals reclaimed him on the waiver wire a few weeks later.
The 25-year-old isn’t likely to play an everyday role in the Jets’ lineup, though, at least not this season. Winnipeg getting three NHL players back from the Los Angeles Kings in the Pierre-Luc Dubois trade could push Jonsson-Fjallby down to press box status, although a potential Mark Scheifele trade later on this offseason could generate more playing opportunities for the Swedish winger.
At league minimum, he’s a perfectly fine option for the Jets in a limited role. He’s a speedy forechecker who’s also responsible defensively, and while he doesn’t have much long-term offensive upside, you don’t have to worry about him as a liability at the bottom of the lineup.
Winnipeg would risk losing him on waivers if he doesn’t make the team, although awarding him a two-year deal (with a one-way salary attached in 2024-25) significantly lowers the likelihood of a claim. There’s a bit of a jam at the bottom of Winnipeg’s forward depth chart, with Jonsson-Fjallby battling with Rasmus Kupari, Jansen Harkins, David Gustafsson, and Dominic Toninato for roster spots on the Jets’ fourth line. All five would require waivers to be assigned to the AHL.
Jets, Sharks Make Minor Deal
Ken Weibe of Sportsnet reports that the Winnipeg Jets have traded the rights to Leon Gawanke to the San Jose Sharks for Artemi Kniazev. Kniazev is the biggest name in the deal, having been drafted 48th overall by the Sharks back in the 2019 NHL Draft.
Over the last two years, Kniazev has been a quality defender for the Sharks AHL affiliate, the San Jose Barracuda. In a combined 121 games at the AHL level, Kniazev has scored 12 goals and 44 assists. Only standing at six feet tall, Kniazev is not a physically imposing force on the blue line by any means but does move the puck very well and possesses strong acceleration, giving him the ability to drive the play. Kniazev has one year remaining on his entry-level contract which will pay him $789K at the NHL level this season.
Gawanke, on the other hand, was a much lower draft pick compared to Kniazev, going 136th overall to the Jets in the 2017 NHL Draft. Even though his rights are now owned by the Sharks organization, it is unlikely he will play in San Jose, given that he has already committed to playing for Adler Mannheim of the DEL next season. However, as the team looks to incorporate exciting young players into its development structure, the team could convince Gawanke to return. Over the past four years playing for the Manitoba Moose, Gawanke has played in a total of 207 games, scoring 35 goals and 79 assists.
Winnipeg Jets Sign Laurent Brossoit, Vladislav Namestnikov, Jeffrey Viel
The Winnipeg Jets have brought back two familiar faces. They’ve signed goaltender Laurent Brossoit back from the Vegas Golden Knights on a one-year $1.75MM deal, per TSN’s Chris Johnston. They’ve also signed forward Vladislav Namestnikov to a two-year, $2MM AAV deal per TSN’s Darren Dreger. Dreger reports they’ve also added former San Jose Sharks forward Jeffrey Viel to a one-year, one-way $775k deal.
Brossoit returns to Winnipeg after a two-year stint with Vegas. He originally signed with the Golden Knights to be their backup goalie and while he held that role in 2021-22, that wasn’t the case in 2022-23. He underwent hip surgery last summer which kept him out of the lineup at the start of the year. Upon returning, Brossoit cleared waivers and was assigned to AHL Henderson. He played in 23 games with the Silver Knights, compiling a 2.72 GAA with a .909 SV% before being recalled in February when injuries struck.
Brossoit himself couldn’t avoid the injury bug the rest of the way as he spent a month on IR soon after but he still made ten starts for Vegas, posting a 2.17 GAA with a .927 SV%; the Golden Knights picked up at least a point in each of those starts. That, coupled with injuries to Adin Hill and Logan Thompson, resulted in Brossoit being the starter for Vegas in their first-round victory over the Jets. Unfortunately, Brossoit was injured partway through the second round against Edmonton, paving the way for Hill to run with the starting job from there. Nevertheless, Brossoit did well enough to earn himself a second chance with the Jets.
As for Namestnikov, he was brought in from San Jose at the trade deadline, a day after the Sharks picked him up from Tampa Bay. The 30-year-old provided Winnipeg with some much-needed secondary scoring down the stretch, picking up 10 points in 20 games with his new team while seeing his playing time jump up by more than three minutes a night to just under 15 minutes per game.
To say that Namestnikov has bounced around in recent years would be putting it lightly. Since the 2019-20 season, the veteran has played for seven different teams (which doesn’t include his brief stint as a Shark). It’s likely that putting a second year on the table helped to secure the commitment from Namestnikov who now has a chance to get a bit of stability while remaining an important part of Winnipeg’s secondary offensive group.
Viel, meanwhile, comes to Winnipeg after a five-year stint in San Jose. The 26-year-old spent most of last season with the AHL Barracuda, picking up 15 goals and 16 assists along with 150 penalty minutes, good for third in the AHL in that department. Viel is best known for being a physical presence on the fourth line in his previous NHL duty, collecting 112 hits and 139 penalty minutes (to go along with five points) in 49 career appearances with the Sharks. As things stand, he’s a candidate to break camp with the Jets on either the fourth line or in a reserve role.
Winnipeg Jets To Sign Collin Delia
The Winnipeg Jets are bolstering their goalie depth with a one-way contract for netminder Collin Delia, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes reports. CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal reports it’s worth a league minimum of $775K for one year.
After having already signed goaltender Laurent Brossoit to a one-year contract today, Delia serves as the primary insurance goaltender to that contract. Because of the injury history to Brossoit last year, Delia may get more playing time than expected in Winnipeg.
Signing a one-year contract with the Vancouver Canucks last offseason, Delia struggled mightily in the NHL. In 20 games played, Delia posted a 10-6-2 record, earning a .882 SV% and a 3.28 GAA. Much can be said about the defense of the Canucks last season, but the underlying metrics weren’t good for Delia either, highlighted by his -11.6 GSAA and his 3.33 adjGAA.
New York Rangers Sign Blake Wheeler, Jonathan Quick
The New York Rangers have nabbed former Winnipeg Jets captain Blake Wheeler on the free agent market, per the team. Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli reports the 35+ contract has an $800K cap hit and carries $300K in potential bonuses. The team’s also made the long-reported Jonathan Quick signing official at an $825K cap hit plus bonuses, says The New York Post’s Mollie Walker.
They’ve also signed forward Alex Belzile to a two-year deal, says TVA’s Renaud Lavoie.
The Rangers’ offseason has been significantly impacted by their dearth of cap space, so adding a veteran scorer like Wheeler at such a cheap price is a major coup.
While he’s no longer the back-to-back 90-point man he was earlier in his time with the Winnipeg Jets, Wheeler remains a lethal weapon on the power play and a solid all-around offensive threat. He scored 55 points in 72 games last season and scored 60 points in 65 games the year before.
The Rangers’ biggest need heading into next season was talent along the right side of their forward corps, and Wheeler is just about the best possible option they could afford. He’ll now have a chance to play with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider, or Vincent Trocheck and Artemi Panarin.
Assuming he stays healthy, he’s set himself up to have a monster season, especially if he can land a place on New York’s top power-play unit.
While he might not be able to set himself up for a long-term, pricey contract next summer as he’ll be set to turn 38 in August of next year, he’s put himself in a prime position on a Stanley Cup contender and under some of the brightest lights in the hockey world.
For Quick, this move allows him to back up one of the NHL’s best goalies, work with one of the NHL’s most highly-regarded goalie coaches in Benoit Allaire, as well as move closer to where he grew up. A legendary netminder whose earlier days with the Los Angeles Kings came to define that era of hockey, Quick’s form has declined sharply in recent seasons.
He posted a .876 save percentage in 31 games with the Kings last season and a .901 in 10 games with the Vegas Golden Knights. That might not be good enough to cut it in New York, but the hope is that with such a renowned coach in his corner, his numbers could rebound. In any case, he’ll now land with a potential Stanley Cup contender and be able to provide guidance to one of the league’s top goalies.
Now for Belzile, he’s reportedly getting a two-year contract which is a nice reward for a player who has worked his way up from the ECHL to the NHL. He became a top scorer for the Laval Rocket with the Montreal Canadiens and when the team faced significant injury issues he became a regular face in head coach Martin St. Louis’ lineup.
In 31 games at the NHL level Belzile scored a solid 14 points, showcasing the possibility for him to become a valuable bottom-sixer on a more regular basis. With the Rangers looking to fill depth lineup spots on the cheap and potentially also improve their AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolf Pack, Belzile could quickly prove to be a savvy signing by Rangers GM Chris Drury.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Wheeler Would Prefer To Sign In Eastern Conference
- Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet tweeted that recent buyout recipient Blake Wheeler would prefer to play for an Eastern Conference team to have a new experience and less travel. The news comes from Wheeler’s agent Matt Keator and it makes sense given Wheeler’s age and his family considerations. The former Winnipeg Jets captain is a free agent for the first time and should have several teams to consider given that is coming off a season in which he posted 16 goals and 39 assists in 72 games.
Winnipeg Jets To Buy Out Blake Wheeler
The Winnipeg Jets have placed Blake Wheeler on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a buyout, according to a team announcement.
Should he clear, Wheeler will become an unrestricted free agent as a result. TSN’s Darren Dreger was the first to report the move, and he also named the Dallas Stars as a team with interest in signing Wheeler once he hits free agency.
Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff issued a statement thanking Wheeler, which included the following:
We would like to thank Blake for his dedication and service to the Jets, the city of Winnipeg and the province of Manitoba. We are incredibly grateful for the contributions that he has made during his 12 seasons with the franchise. Most notably, the seven years when he served as the captain of the Jets and helped lead the team to the 2018 Western Conference Final.
As a result of this buyout, the Jets will save $5MM in cap space for this season, reducing Wheeler’s cap hit from $8.25MM to just $2.75MM.
That comes at a cost of a $2.75MM cap hit next season, though. This buyout is about more than just financials, though, it’s about giving the player a fresh start and also allowing the Jets to move on from someone who was once arguably the face of their franchise.
Now 36 years old, Wheeler captained the Jets for six seasons before having the captaincy stripped by incoming head coach Rick Bowness a year ago. A two-time NHL All-Star, Wheeler has been with the Jets since they relocated from Atlanta, and has totaled nearly 900 games for the franchise. He’s scored 255 goals and 795 points as a Jet, first among all players of the franchise’s newest era and third all-time including the Jets’ earlier era, behind just Dale Hawerchuk and Thomas Steen.
Wheeler oversaw the rise of the Jets under Paul Maurice, an era that culminated in a run to the Western Conference Final in 2017-8, where they fell to the Vegas Golden Knights. The Jets afterward failed to re-capture the magic of that year, though Wheeler himself continued his personal brilliance hovering at or near a point-per-game rate.
Late in his Jets tenure, Wheeler and other members of the team’s veteran core drew criticism for what looked from the outside to many fans to be a toxic culture and lack of accountability in the Jets locker room. While as outside observers we don’t truly know what the reality of the Jets’ locker room and culture actually was, it became clear after the “C” was removed from Wheeler’s jersey that a fresh start would eventually be necessary for both sides.
Now, that fresh start has been secured, and the Jets have opened up some significant cap space in a summer where financial flexibility is at a premium. As for Wheeler, he’ll hit free agency a year early and have the ability to select where he potentially spends the rest of his playing career.
Wheeler scored a combined 61 points in 77 regular season and playoff games, so while he might not be the dominant offensive force he once was it’s clear he still has something to contribute.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images