Connor Hellebuyck’s future with the Winnipeg Jets has turned into the kind of standoff that leaves almost nobody satisfied - except, perhaps, the team’s cap situation.
On 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman said he does not think “anybody involved” from the Jets wants to see Hellebuyck come back and suit up at any point this year. For now, the 2012 fifth-round pick appears headed toward a long wait for a resolution, even if the longer it drags on, the more people will keep wondering about a return.
As long as Hellebuyck remains suspended, he is unpaid. He also can’t show potential suitors what he can still bring.
Winnipeg, meanwhile, gets the biggest immediate benefit with his $8.5MM cap hit off the books. That deal still has five more years left on it and runs through age 37, which has helped slow down any trade path.
At the moment, only about 10 NHL teams have the space to absorb that contract, and none of the clubs that need a goaltender look especially attractive if a no-move clause has to be waived.
The Jets, though, have hardly been knocked off course. They are 3-1-1 to start the season after last year’s disappointment, and the club has gotten solid work in goal from Stuart Skinner, who has posted a .920 save percentage with at least 30 shots turned away in each of his last three appearances. Winnipeg is also hoping Clay Stevenson can turn into the next under-the-radar goaltending success story after winning his first start.
If anything, the situation has seemed to sharpen the group. It looks like game #80, a loss in Vegas last April, was the last time the 2012 fifth-round pick will ever wear a Winnipeg uniform, though the longer this goes, the more a return will be talked about.
Around the league, the Golden Knights announced Parker Wotherspoon is week-to-week with an upper-body injury. He played 19:05 in their last game, and it’s still unclear when the injury happened.
His absence opens the door for Dylan Coghlan, who was a regular in the Knights’ lineup five years ago before bouncing around and playing in 62 AHL games last season. If the 28-year-old AHL All-Star gets into at least seven games while Wotherspoon is out, it will be the most NHL action he’s seen since 2022-23.
Coghlan had 44 points in 62 games last year, and he gives Jeremy Lauzon a right-shot partner with some offense on the third pair. It also appears safe to expect Ville Heinola to get into a Vegas game at some point after a change of scenery at age 25.
With Coghlan getting the call tonight, Heinola could make his debut as soon as tomorrow in Nashville.
Another former high-end prospect is on the move overseas. Ty Rattie has signed with EC Salzburg in Austria, the club said.
Rattie built a reputation early on for his seven-goal, 11-point showing in just four preseason games, and years ago his shot and complementary game looked like a strong fit next to Connor McDavid. The 33-year-old never locked down a permanent NHL spot and left after 99 games, but he has kept bouncing around the international circuit since then, with stops in Russia, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland.
The 2011 second-round pick by the Blues has continued to produce offense along the way, including when he scored 57 goals in the WHL and last season, when he won a Swiss-A title in Switzerland alongside Jacob de La Rose Michael Raffl.
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Connellys early play has given the Knights a real reason to feel encouraged about the future of the spot Dorofeyev once occupied. For a team always balancing present needs against long-term value, getting a young player to push the discussion this quickly is exactly the sort of development that can make a front office feel better about a difficult roster call. [Read more 🡒]
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Vegas did push back enough to make the finish interesting, trimming the deficit with a late goal, but the damage had already been done by then. The bigger concern for the Golden Knights was special teams, where Minnesota controlled the game by killing all five Vegas power plays while cashing in on its lone chance with the extra skater, the kind of edge that can decide plenty of games before the calendar really turns. [Read more 🡒]
Wild Rookie's Second NHL Game Just Took A Heated Turn
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Afterward, Wild forward Michael McCarron took issue with the way Lauzon handled the exchange, especially given Lorenzs age and experience level. McCarron, who knows Lauzon from their time together in Nashville, said he did not like what happened and praised Lorenz for standing up for himself, leaving a messy postgame storyline to go with a strong night for Minnesota. [Read more 🡒]