The Winnipeg Jets have placed Walker Duehr on waivers, according to Mike McIntyre of the Winnipeg Free Press.
Duehr, 28, started the season on Winnipeg’s season-opening injured reserve after a preseason lower-body injury. He is entering his second year in the Jets organization after signing a one-year, $775K deal with the club ahead of the 2025-26 season.
Last season, Duehr spent most of his time with the AHL’s Manitoba Moose, where he put up 17 goals and 34 points in 62 games and finished with a +4 rating. Winnipeg did give him a brief NHL look in early March, recalling him for a three-game stretch. He did not record a point in those appearances and averaged 9:30 of ice time per game.
The Jets liked enough of what they saw to bring him back in short order. One day after the Carolina Hurricanes lifted the Stanley Cup, Winnipeg signed Duehr to a two-year, $1.75MM contract with a $875K AAV that runs through the 2027-28 season.
Duehr arrived in Winnipeg with some NHL mileage already under his belt. After playing as a tertiary scorer at Minnesota State University-Mankato, he signed with the Calgary Flames as a collegiate free agent late in the 2020-21 season.
He went on to appear in 84 games for Calgary from 2021 to 2025, scoring nine goals and 19 points with a -9 rating while averaging 8:55 of ice time per game. He also recorded 150 hits during that span, a reminder of what he can bring in a bottom-six role.
In Other News...
Connor McDavid Is Forcing A Bigger Oilers Question Again
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The wider conversation, though, keeps circling back to the Oilers because Connor McDavid has opened the year at a scoring pace that has not been seen since Mario Lemieux, a start that has clearly caught the eye of coach Mike Babcock. For the Jets, it is another reminder that the NHLs biggest stars can bend the discussion in a hurry, even when the more immediate question in Winnipeg is how long the club can keep absorbing the Hellebuyck fallout without the crease becoming the story. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Suddenly Face A Bigger Josh Morrissey Problem Than Expected
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Yagers promotion gives Winnipeg a chance to reward a player who has started this AHL season on a strong note and is arriving earlier than he did last year. For a team already trying to manage one of its most important defensemen being out longer than expected, the timing of that recall matters, especially with the Jets needing to keep the rest of the roster moving while Morrissey works back. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Prospects Are Driving Wins Even When The Moose Make It Messy
The Manitoba Moose kept rolling with a 4-3 overtime win against the Stars, pushing their early-season mark to 5-1-0 in a game that had plenty of the usual AHL chaos. For Winnipeg, the encouraging part was the list of names making an impact: Jets prospects Nikita Chibrikov, Colby Barlow and Brayden Yager all found the net, while Elias Salomonsson was back in game action for the first time since shoulder surgery last April.
It was not a clean night, though, and Thomas Milic had to fight through some messy moments in goal to keep the Moose in position to finish it off. A teammates miscue helped turn into the tying goal for the Stars, but Winnipegs development group still found a way to leave with two points, another reminder that the organizations prospect pipeline is producing real results even when the game itself gets bumpy. [Read more 🡒]