- While Gaudreau was locked up by his team, one play that is now eligible to hit the open market is Winnipeg Jets forward Alex Jonsson-Fjallby. As capfriendly.com reports, the 25 year old will become a Group 6 UFA because of his age, and career games played. Had the Swedish winger played 75 career games before the end of this season, he would have retained RFA status and remained property of the Jets. He finished this season with 74 career games played.
Jets Rumors
Winnipeg Jets Sign Nikita Chibrikov To Entry-Level Contract
The Winnipeg Jets signed forward Nikita Chibrikov to a three-year, entry-level contract Monday, per a team release. Chibrikov’s contract will begin in 2023-24 and carry a cap hit of $925,000. Chibrikov has also signed a professional tryout contract with the Jets’ AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, and he’ll join the team as they continue their play in the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Winnipeg drafted Chibrikov, 20, with the 50th overall selection in the 2021 NHL Draft. His development path since hasn’t been smooth, failing to secure extended playing time in any league in Russia. The constant shuttling between levels has stunted Chibrikov’s offensive development, with his point production today not dissimilar to his production during his draft year.
It makes the timing of the signing significant. With Chibrikov now under Winnipeg’s control, he’ll remain in North America next season and see extended time with the Moose, allowing him to play in an organization solely focused on his development.
He played most of this past season with Spartak Moskva in the KHL, recording just two points in 31 games with a very limited role. His game revolves around speed and skill, something he’ll have more opportunity to showcase with more minutes in the AHL.
Chibrikov will be a restricted free agent in 2026.
West Notes: Kopitar, Fiala, Chibrikov
The Los Angeles Kings’ season-ending loss last night is still fresh in the minds of many, but that hasn’t stopped some of the team’s players from looking forward to the future in today’s exit media availabilities. One of those players is captain Anze Kopitar, who said today to the media (including The Fourth Period’s Dennis Bernstein) that he wants to retire as a “one-franchise player” and would like to have a conversation about a contract extension this summer.
Kopitar, 35, will see his $10MM AAV deal expire next summer and is therefore eligible for a contract extension at the start of the new league year. Despite reaching his mid-thirties Kopitar remains the Kings’ most important player. He’s a lineup-topping first-line-center who scored 74 points in the regular season and seven points in the team’s six-game playoff loss. While the Kings might not have the financial bandwidth to have his next contract match his current $10MM cap hit, this looks to be a situation where both sides are highly motivated to get a deal done and therefore it’s a decent possibility that we see a Kopitar contract extension this summer.
Some other notes from the Western Conference:
- The Kings’ most important winger, Kevin Fiala, talked to the media today as well and gave an update on the status of his health. While he did not want to dive into specifics, Fiala called the injury that caused him to miss three games of the Kings’ first-round series a continuation of the knee injury he suffered earlier in the season against the Colorado Avalanche. He did state that no summer surgery would be necessary to get him back to full health, which is great news for the Kings as Fiala (72 points in 69 regular-season games and six points in three playoff contests) is their most dynamic offensive generator.
- Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe relays word from Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff at his press conference today that Jets 2021 second-round pick Nikita Chibrikov is in Winnipeg and is expected to join the AHL’s Manitoba Moose at the conclusion of his KHL contract. The expectation is that the 20-year-old winger will play in North America next season after spending most of this season with Spartak Moscow in the KHL. As is the norm for many younger players in the KHL, Chibrikov received very few minutes in the 31 games he played in the KHL this season, sometimes playing as little as 46 seconds, as he did in a February loss to Dynamo Moscow. It’s very possible that the Jets view the AHL as a better developmental environment for Chibrikov, prompting today’s announcement.
Kevin Cheveldayoff To Remain Winnipeg Jets GM
Those expecting sweeping organizational changes after the Winnipeg Jets’ frustrating five-game series loss to the Vegas Golden Knights are likely to be disappointed. According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, Kevin Cheveldayoff will remain in his position as Jets’ general manager and will be the one to guide the club through what looks to be an extremely uncertain future. In addition, Cheveldayoff announced that head coach Rick Bowness would remain the team’s head coach.
Cheveldayoff has been the only GM the Jets have had since they relocated from Atlanta in advance of the 2011-12 season. His reign seemed to reach its peak in the 2017-18 season when he was named a finalist for the GM of the Year Award. The Jets made a run to the Western Conference Final that year, falling to the upstart Vegas Golden Knights.
Their core of Mark Scheifele, Connor Hellebuyck, Josh Morrissey, Dustin Byfuglien, Blake Wheeler and 44-goal scorer Patrik Laine looked to be among the most complete cores any competitive team could boast, and that conference finals run looked to be simply a warning shot to the rest of the league that a new era of true Stanley Cup contention was set to begin in Winnipeg.
That didn’t happen, though, and for a variety of reasons the Jets currently find themselves in an uncertain organizational place. Byfuglien’s surprise retirement proved quite the curveball for the team to handle, and while the emergence of Morrissey and Neal Pionk has helped Winnipeg maintain a solid stable of blueliners, Byfuglien added a dynamic element to their team that the Jets still miss.
On offense, Laine’s maddening inconsistency and uncertain contract situation prompted the team to deal him and another frustrating first-round pick, Jack Roslovic, to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Pierre-Luc Dubois. Dubois scored 67 points in 78 combined regular-season and playoff games this season, but his night-to-night inconsistency and his apparent desire to test the unrestricted free-agent waters in 2024 has left the Jets wanting more.
Now, Winnipeg has four key players set to potentially hit the open market after next season: Hellebuyck, Wheeler, Scheifele, and Dubois.
Cheveldayoff has in the past traded players in similar situations, such as Jacob Trouba and Andrew Copp, rather than let them hit the open market and be lost for “nothing.”
One might assume given how long Cheveldayoff has been in position as the Jets general manager, the organization might prefer a fresh face to lead them in any sort of rebuilding or retooling direction.
With so many key players inching closer to unrestricted free agency, the best path for the Jets could very well be to cash in on those assets and use them to retool around a new core of players like Kyle Connor, Nikolaj Ehlers, Pionk, and Morrissey.
It’s also true, though, that the news that Cheveldayoff will remain in charge of the Jets’ hockey operations indicates that such a drastic shift in organizational direction (towards a re-tool) isn’t yet on the table.
Instead, it could be that Cheveldayoff’s mandate for the summer will be to surround his existing core with as much talent as possible in order to make one last run for a Stanley Cup next season.
If that’s indeed the direction the organization prefers, the 2023-24 season becomes possibly the most important campaign in this new era of Jets hockey. Based on Friedman’s reporting, it seems Cheveldayoff will be the one to guide the Jets through that all-important year, and this upcoming all-important summer.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Jets Notes: Hellebuyck, Dubois, Ehlers, Bowness
The future of Connor Hellebuyck in Winnipeg is one of the things many will be keeping an eye on this offseason. The 29-year-old had a standout showing this season, posting a 2.49 GAA with a .920 SV% while leading the NHL in games played. He’s eligible to sign a contract extension this summer but indicated in his end-of-season media availability (video link) that he hasn’t yet given any thought to signing another deal with the Jets and discussions with the team on that front have not started. Hellebuyck indicated that his primary goal remains to go after a Stanley Cup so if Winnipeg opts for a rebuild this summer after their disappointing playoff exit, it would be surprising if Hellebuyck chose to sign an extension. Regardless of what team he signs that next contract with, he’ll be getting a sizable raise from his current $6.166MM AAV.
More from Winnipeg:
- In his availability (video link), Pierre-Luc Dubois remained non-committal about his future with the team, instead stating that he hasn’t given much thought to his future just yet. The 24-year-old, who acknowledged that he dealt with hip trouble this season, has been in trade speculation going back to last summer amid reports that he thought he could be moved to Montreal at the draft. Dubois accepted his $6MM qualifying offer last summer and will be in his final year of restricted free agency with arbitration eligibility in July.
- Winger Nikolaj Ehlers indicated in his session (video link) that it’s possible that he’ll be able to suit up at the World Championships next month despite missing all but one game in their series against Vegas. He declined to disclose the nature of the injury that kept him out for more than two weeks. Ehlers would certainly be a key addition to a Denmark squad that will be missing a few of its NHL players at least with those teams having already moved onto the second round.
- After a short and blunt presser following their elimination game, some wondered if head coach Rick Bowness would stay on for next season. He told the media today (video link) that his intention is to remain behind the bench in Winnipeg but declined to comment on what changes to the team might be needed, instead deferring to GM Kevin Cheveldayoff. The 68-year-old has one more season plus a team option remaining on his contract after joining the Jets last summer.
A Multi-Year Offer Might Help Convince Vladislav Namestnikov To Remain With Jets
- Jets forward Vladislav Namestnikov has certainly bounced around lately, playing for seven different teams since 2019. With that in mind, Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe wonders if Winnipeg offering the 30-year-old a multi-year extension would be enough to get the pending UFA to become a longer-term piece for the team instead of just being another rental. Namestnikov had 10 points in 20 games during the regular season after being acquired at the trade deadline while chipping in with a pair of assists in their five-game loss to Vegas.
Jets Assign Two Players To AHL
While Winnipeg’s season came to an end on Thursday, a pair of players that were up with the Jets will see their campaign continue a little while longer. The team announced (Twitter link) that goaltenders Oskari Salminen and Arvid Holm were returned to Manitoba of the AHL.
Salminen is in the first year of an entry-level deal signed last May. The 23-year-old was recalled to Winnipeg at the beginning of the playoffs but didn’t see any game action while up with the big club. Salminen had a decent first season in North America, posting a 3.06 GAA along with a .896 SV% in 39 games, leading the Moose in appearances by a goaltender.
As for Holm, the pending RFA served as the backup for the Jets at the end of their series against Vegas after being brought up last weekend. The 24-year-old was the better of the two netminders in the minors this season, posting a 2.67 GAA and a .911 SV% in 35 appearances, a strong improvement from his rookie campaign in 2021-22.
The assignments are a welcome one for Manitoba with their best-of-five second-round series getting underway yesterday. Having their regular goalie tandem intact instead of emergency options can only help their chances of advancing this postseason.
Jets Injury Updates: Scheifele, Dubois, Ehlers
Injuries to important players have piled up at an inopportune time for the Winnipeg Jets, and could lead to a quick playoff exit at the hands of the Vegas Golden Knights. Down 3-1 in the series, 40-goal scorer Mark Scheifele left Game 4 with a suspected shoulder injury and is not on the ice at practice today, says Sportsnet’s Ken Wiebe. He’s not expected to play in Game 5 tomorrow night.
Scheifele, despite managing just one goal in the series, is a cornerstone piece of the team’s forward corps. With a mixed bag of news today on some other Jets forwards, his absence still means they’ll need miracle performances from depth players such as Vladislav Namestnikov and Adam Lowry to pull off an improbable comeback in the series.
- In even more concerning news, Wiebe also reports that Pierre-Luc Dubois was absent from practice today. The nature of his absence is unknown, as he recorded a goal in over 20 minutes of ice time in Game 4 and isn’t listed with any injuries. Still, if his absence from practice today is for any reason other than rest or maintenance, it could be a depth blow to the Jets, who utilized 23-year-old depth forward David Gustafsson in Dubois’ place on the first line in line rushes today.
- The team could see Nikolaj Ehlers back for Game 5, though. Wiebe reports Ehlers was a full participant in practice today, skating on a line with deadline additions Namestnikov and Nino Niederreiter. Ehlers hasn’t played since game 81 of the regular season on April 11 with an upper-body injury.
Scheifele Possible For Game Five
In Game Four between the Vegas Golden Knights and Winnipeg Jets, star center Mark Scheifele left the game early with an upper-body injury. Already missing Josh Morrissey and Nikolaj Ehlers, including Scheifele in that group moving forward might be the nail in the coffin for the Jets in their first-round matchup.
Thankfully for Jets fans, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet relays on a message from head coach Rick Bowness, showing optimism that Scheifele could return for Game Five. With the Golden Knights already leading the series three games to one, having Scheifele on the ice for Winnipeg would certainly increase their chances of extending the series.
Jets Injury Notes: Ehlers, Reichel, Rittich
The Winnipeg Jets need a strong effort at home tonight to avoid falling down 3-1 in their First Round series against the Vegas Golden Knights. Per The Athletic’s Murat Ates, they’ll again need to do it without forward Nikolaj Ehlers, who has still not been cleared to return to play by the team’s medical staff.
Ehlers hasn’t played in almost two weeks with an upper-body injury after registering 38 points in 45 regular season games. Depth pieces such as Adam Lowry, Nino Niederreiter, and Vladislav Namestnikov have stepped up in his absence against Vegas, but they haven’t gotten the most out of Mark Scheifele, who has just one goal in the series. They’ll need more strong performances from their secondary scorers in order to extend their season long enough for Ehlers to return.
- While the Jets are in the thick of their playoff battle, the postseason for their AHL affiliate, the Manitoba Moose, won’t start until next Friday. They’ll be playing without the services of forward Kristian Reichel, who the team confirmed today is out for the season after sustaining an upper-body injury on April 11. Reichel recorded 24 points in 61 games for the Moose this year and made two appearances for Winnipeg, registering an assist.
- Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun confirms that David Rittich will be unavailable to back up tonight due to a lower-body injury, paving the way for Arvid Holm to sit on the bench. Holm was recalled earlier today on an emergency basis. Rittich has played just one game since March 14, with Connor Hellebuyck taking the majority of starts to keep the Jets in playoff position.