Dawson Mercer didn’t need long to start changing the look of the Winnipeg Jets.
Through 10 games with his new club, the 25-year-old forward has already turned into a real difference-maker. Mercer has five goals and three assists, and all five of those goals have come in his last four games. That kind of burst is exactly what the Jets were hoping for when they landed him from the New Jersey Devils in the trade that sent disgruntled goaltender Connor Hellebuyck the other way three weeks ago.
The production has come in a hurry. Mercer got his first goal as a Jet in the Nov. 5 6-2 win over the Vancouver Canucks, then erupted for two more against his former team in the Nov. 10 4-2 win at Canada Life Centre.
One of those was the opening goal of the game in the first period, and the other was a third-period power-play marker that stood up as the winner. Two nights later, he added another pair in the Jets’ 8-3 rout of the Dallas Stars, including a backhand breakaway goal in the final seconds of the second period that pushed Winnipeg ahead 5-3.
“He finds places to get that stick open and get his shot off,” head coach Scott Arniel said after the victory of the Stars. “He’s confident now. I think the rust and newness of being on a new team is kind of gone and he looks like he’s real comfortable.”
That comfort has not come out of nowhere. Mercer’s first stretch in Winnipeg was quieter, with two assists in his first six games after a slow start in New Jersey that saw him go without a goal and finish with four assists in 10 games before the move.
But the timing of the trade made the adjustment a tough one. He arrived in Winnipeg late on Oct. 23 and was immediately dropped into the whirlwind of the blockbuster deal and the Heritage Classic buildup.
His first game with the Jets came outdoors at Princess Auto Stadium.
Now, though, the fit looks much cleaner. Mercer has settled in on the second line at right wing with Brayden Yager and Cole Perfetti, while also seeing time on the second power-play unit. The trio has combined for 15 points during the Jets’ five-game winning streak, and TSN’s Craig Button said in second intermission last night that he believes “the Winnipeg Jets may have found the second line they’ve been looking for for a couple of years,”
That kind of secondary punch has been a huge shift for Winnipeg. A lack of scoring beyond the top group was a major problem during the team’s nine-game losing streak and even before that, but Mercer’s surge has helped make the Jets look far less like a one-line team.
His presence has also taken some pressure off the Kyle Connor/Mark Scheifele/Gabriel Vilardi line, even though that trio did plenty of damage of its own against Dallas with four goals and nine points. Yager’s strong play since being called up from the Manitoba Moose has mattered too, and it has allowed Arniel to move 2026 eight-overall pick Viggo Bjorck into a less demanding third-line winger role. After shifting off second-line centre, the 18-year-old has looked more comfortable and has four assists in his last five games after going scoreless in his first 16.
The Hellebuyck situation still hangs over all of it. Jets fans have not forgotten how he handled things over the past number of months - publicly demanding a trade, refusing to report, and never offering specifics about why he wanted out of Winnipeg. That frustration was on full display at Canada Life Centre against the Devils, where the crowd was hostile and the chants were creative, even though Hellebuyck did not start and spent the game in a video room.
But if Mercer keeps producing like this, the Jets may have found a way to soften that blow.
In Other News...
Jets Winning Streak Now Comes With A Tough Blue Line Decision
The Jets kept rolling with an 8-3 win over Dallas, pushing their streak to five straight even as the night brought a new concern on the back end. Dylan DeMelo left with a week-to-week injury, and Winnipeg now has to sort out how to absorb that loss while the team stays on the road and keeps the momentum going.
Practice in Chicago should give the coaching staff a chance to map out the next move, and a recall of Henry Thrun appears likely as the replacement. The timing adds another wrinkle with the Manitoba Moose also in Illinois, getting set to face the IceHogs after splitting their own games against Dallas, leaving the organization juggling roster decisions at both levels. [Read more 🡒]
Jets Just Changed A Key Part Of Dallas Blue Line
The Jets left Dallas with more than just a result on the scoreboard, as one collision in that game has now altered the Stars blue line for the next stretch. Defenseman Lian Bichsel is expected to miss about two weeks with a lower-body injury, and head coach Glen Gulutzan said the rookie is week-to-week after getting hurt against Winnipeg.
Bichsel had been a steady presence for Dallas, appearing in every one of the clubs first 18 games before the injury. For the Jets, it is another reminder that their physical style can leave a mark beyond the final horn, while for the Stars it creates an early test of depth on defense as they wait for one of their regulars to get back. [Read more 🡒]
Former Jet Johnathan Kovacevic Suddenly Has A New Health Concern
Johnathan Kovacevics season has taken another turn after the Devils placed the former Jet on injured reserve because of an ankle injury. The defenseman was hurt in a game against Winnipeg, adding a fresh setback to a return that had already been slowed by his recovery from knee surgery.
New Jersey filled the roster spot by recalling Anton Silaev from Utica, where the recent first-round pick has played 12 games this season. For the Jets, it is another reminder of a familiar face running into more health trouble, and for the Devils it leaves their blue line juggling yet another moving piece while Kovacevic works his way back. [Read more 🡒]