The Colorado Avalanche enter the Central Division race with plenty of expectations, but the team that may be hardest to pin down is Winnipeg.
On paper, the Jets still have the kind of roster that can make life miserable for anyone in the division. With Connor Hellebuyck in the fold, Winnipeg has the kind of goaltending that can swing a season on its own.
But that stability is anything but certain right now. Hellebuyck has been the subject of trade rumors all summer, and while nothing has come of them yet, that does not mean the possibility has disappeared.
That uncertainty matters because Winnipeg’s range of outcomes feels wide. The Jets were the 2024-25 Presidents’ Trophy winner, then crashed all the way to a playoff miss. They could just as easily bounce back and look like a force again, or they could slip into something far more dangerous.
If Hellebuyck were to leave, the Jets’ path gets a lot murkier. Without him, getting back to the playoffs would be a serious challenge, and the organization could find itself staring at a rebuild sooner rather than later.
That would stand in sharp contrast to Colorado. The Avalanche remain firmly in their competitive window, even with the club ranking among the oldest in the NHL. They still have enough runway to stay in the hunt for the next half-decade or so, which gives Colorado fans reason to feel good about what lies ahead into the 2030s.
Winnipeg does not have that same cushion. The Jets may have trouble luring top free agents, and getting players to waive no-trade clauses to go there is no easy sell. On top of that, the prospect pipeline does not appear strong enough to quickly reshape the roster.
For now, though, a lot of this remains speculation. Winnipeg’s fate still hinges on keeping Hellebuyck and squeezing the most out of the group it already has. If that happens, the Jets could rediscover their Presidents’ Trophy level and, perhaps in 2026-27, give the Avalanche a real fight.
In Other News...
Avalanche Fans Cant Ignore This Rantanen Trade Debate Anymore
The Avalanches decision to move Mikko Rantanen to Carolina still hangs over the franchise because it came down to contract-extension disagreements, not a lack of belief in his talent. Colorado got Martin Necas and Jack Drury back in the deal, then later sent Drury to Nashville, leaving Necas as the main on-ice piece tied to one of the biggest roster swings the team has made in years.
Necas gave Colorado a strong regular season, but his playoff struggles have only sharpened the comparison to Rantanen, who had already built a strong postseason rsum in Denver. For Avalanche fans, the debate is no longer about whether the trade happened, but whether the return can ever make up for losing a winger who was built for the spring spotlight. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Face Looming Conflict As Quebec Eyes NHL Return
Talk of NHL expansion is back in the air, and Quebec City has quickly emerged as one of the more intriguing possibilities. The league is weighing new franchises in places like Atlanta and Kansas City, with another Canadian market also under consideration, while the old Nordiques trademark remains in the NHLs hands and could open the door to a familiar name if Quebec ever gets the green light.
For the Avalanche, the larger issue is what a renewed Quebec bid would mean for the leagues map and its identity in Canada. The NHL is currently operating with 33 teams after the Arizona Coyotes franchise was deactivated, so any move to add clubs would reshape the balance of the league and revive a long-running conversation about where hockey should grow next. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche May Have Found Another Goalie Prospect Worth Watching
Nikita Novosyolov has quickly become a name worth tracking in the Avalanche system. The 22-year-old goalie spent the past two seasons with Gornyak in the VHL, where his strong results helped put him on Colorados radar, and he also got a close-up look at the organization during development camp. For a team that always has an eye on its next wave of talent, adding a promising netminder is a useful bit of business.
Colorado moved to bring him in on June 1, 2026, and the next step should give the club a clearer read on how far he can go. Novosyolov is expected to open the 2026-27 season with the Avalanches ECHL affiliate in New Mexico, where the adjustment to North American pro hockey will be part of the test. Goaltenders can take a while to sort themselves out, but if he keeps trending the way he has, this could be the start of a longer conversation. [Read more 🡒]