The Winnipeg Jets have found their scoring groove lately, but if that dries up, one name from the Manitoba Moose deserves a hard look: Dima Zhilkin.
Winnipeg’s offense has been powered by hot hands such as Mark Scheifele and Dawson Mercer among others, yet Zhilkin is putting together the kind of AHL season that makes him impossible to ignore. The Jets’ third-round pick in 2022 has not broken through at the NHL level yet, but his progress with the Moose has been steady, and this season he’s taken another step.
Last year, Zhilkin finished with 24 points in 62 games. He’s already six points away from matching that mark now, with 18 points in 16 games. The production has come in a hurry, too: eight goals and ten assists, points in 11 of those 16 games, and a five-game point streak that has him tracking toward a point-per-game pace.
That kind of surge matters because Winnipeg has already shown it will reach into the AHL when it needs help. The Jets were one of the league’s least productive teams through their first 12 games, scoring just 2.33 goals per game.
Over the last eight, that number has jumped to 4.13. If the attack slips back toward that earlier level, another young forward could get the call.
Brayden Yager is the recent example. After a slow start, Winnipeg brought up the former first-round pick once he had 12 points in ten AHL games. So far, Yager has held his own with a goal and an assist in five games.
Zhilkin could be next in line. He played six games with the Jets last season, so a second NHL stint is already on the table. After making offseason adjustments and looking like a different player this year, the 22-year-old may be ready for another shot - and maybe ready to stick this time.
In Other News...
Jets Lineup Gets Shaken Up Again With One Big Question On Defense
The Jets lineup shuffle continued at practice ahead of their game against the Blackhawks, with Nino Niederreiter back in after Isak Rosns injury opened a spot. On the blue line, Haydn Fleury is expected to step in for the injured Dylan DeMelo, giving Winnipeg another look at a defense group that has had to adjust on the fly.
Elias Salomonsson was back on the ice and could be close to rejoining the team, which adds another layer to a defense situation that still feels unsettled. Elsewhere in the organization, the Manitoba Moose had a full practice with Ashton Sautner and Noah Gregor taking part, while three Jets prospects also turned in notable NCAA performances, a reminder that the pipeline is still giving the club reasons to keep watching beyond the immediate injury news. [Read more 🡒]
Stars Just Made A Quiet Blue Line Move Worth Noticing
The Stars quietly shuffled their blue line by activating defenseman Luke Krys from the injured/non-roster list and sending him to the Texas Stars in the AHL, a small transaction that still matters for a team trying to keep its depth chart in order. It is the kind of move that rarely grabs headlines on its own, but it can tell you plenty about where a club is in terms of health, roster flexibility and the next layer of help waiting in the system.
Around the league, there was also a healthier note for Vancouver, where defenseman Tom Willander has recovered from a lower-body injury and is available to play. For Winnipeg, though, the injury picture remains less encouraging, with forward Isak Rosen still unavailable. In a stretch where every available body can affect lineup decisions, those status updates continue to shape how teams manage both their immediate plans and their longer-term depth. [Read more 🡒]
Mark Scheifele Just Entered A New Tier In Jets History
Mark Scheifele kept adding to a season that already feels like it belongs in the Jets history books, tying Dale Hawerchuk on Winnipegs all-time points list during the clubs 8-3 win over the Dallas Stars. Scheifele finished with three points, including two goals, and his night fit neatly into a game where the Jets kept rolling offensively and stretched their winning streak to five.
The supporting cast did plenty of damage too, with multiple Winnipeg skaters turning in multi-point performances in a lopsided result that had the home side in control for long stretches. Stuart Skinner handled 31 shots in goal, but the bigger story for Winnipeg was the way Scheifeles latest milestone now puts him alongside one of the franchises defining names, with the next step in that climb suddenly looking very real. [Read more 🡒]