The Winnipeg Jets took one piece of business off the board on Wednesday, agreeing to a five-year contract with Cole Perfetti and sidestepping arbitration before the hearing ever got started.
That move doesn’t settle the bigger question hanging over the team: whether Connor Hellebuyck is on the move, possibly to the Buffalo Sabres or somewhere else. But it does add one more layer to the conversation, because Perfetti has a direct link to one of the names that keeps coming up in those trade discussions.
Perfetti and Sabres center Ryan McLeod were teammates in the OHL, and that connection has not gone unnoticed. In a new article on Wednesday, The Athletic’s Murat Ates pointed to McLeod as a sensible target if Winnipeg does end up dealing Hellebuyck.
"Ryan McLeod would be a more reasonable target and has already dominated alongside Jets forward Cole Perfetti," The Athletic's Murat Ates wrote in a new article on Wednesday. "The 26-year-old playmaking center played with Perfetti on the Saginaw Spirit’s top line during their OHL playoff run in 2019.
Jack Quinn and Peyton Krebs may each have appeal, too, but wouldn’t represent the same kind of home run swing. A return of McLeod and a substantial secondary piece could be viewed as a success."
Perfetti was never really expected to be moved this offseason, so the arbitration date was always more of a formality than a real threat. The new deal simply gets the sides to the same place without the hearing.
Still, it matters in the larger picture. Hellebuyck rumors keep swirling, McLeod’s name keeps surfacing, and Winnipeg has already done right by Perfetti. If the Jets do wind up moving Hellebuyck, landing McLeod could make that a little easier to sell inside the room.
There’s more than one player to think about, of course. But if Winnipeg is trying to manage the fallout from a Hellebuyck trade, a familiar face like McLeod could help smooth things over.
In Other News...
Sabres May Finally Have An Answer In The Hellebuyck Chase
Ryan McLeod has quietly become one of the more interesting names in Buffalos ongoing search for a difference-making goalie. The Sabres have spent plenty of time trying to sort out their forward depth, and McLeods recent growth has only made him more appealing as a possible piece in any bigger conversation. His past connection with Jets forward Cole Perfetti adds another layer to why Winnipeg could view him favorably, especially if the Sabres ever get serious about chasing Connor Hellebuyck.
For now, though, this remains more of a fit than a finished deal. Buffalo has other young forwards who could enter the discussion, including Konsta Helenius, Zach Benson, Josh Doan, Jack Quinn and Peyton Krebs, but the exact shape of any potential package is still unclear. McLeods value has risen enough to make him a logical talking point, yet the Sabres are still in the speculative stage, waiting to see whether this chase ever turns into something concrete. [Read more 🡒]
Why Sabres Fans Are Suddenly Talking Themselves Into Louis Crevier
Louis Crevier is the kind of defenseman Sabres fans can talk themselves into pretty quickly. After coming over in the deal involving Bowen Byram, the 25-year-old arrived with a season in Chicago that hinted at real growth, the sort of step forward that makes a player look less like a throw-in and more like a piece with a future. He set career highs across the board with the Blackhawks, and for a Buffalo blue line that always has room for more size and stability, that matters.
The appeal starts with the physical profile. At 6-foot-8, Crevier already stands out before he takes a shift, and he backed that up with a heavier, more complete season that showed he can contribute at both ends and play with bite. The Sabres are still sorting out what their long-term top four looks like, but Crevier has at least given the fan base a reason to wonder whether he can grow into that conversation sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]