Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff is ready to move on after finally completing the difficult task of finding a suitable trade partner for superstar goalie Connor Hellebuyck.
The Jets sent Hellebuyck, who won three Vezina Trophies and one Hart Trophy during his 11 years in Winnipeg, to the New Jersey Devils on Friday in exchange for forwards Dawson Mercer and Nick Bjugstad, goaltender Nico Daws, prospect forward Alexander Command, a 2027 seventh-round pick and a 2029 second-round pick.
Hellebuyck, a 33-year-old American, let Cheveldayoff and the Jets know he wanted out of Winnipeg at the end of last season despite having five seasons remaining on the seven-year, $59.1 million contract he signed in October of 2023.
Cheveldayoff had a goal in mind right from the initial trade request and told TSN 1050’s OverDrive on Monday he was “comfortable” with the package they received for Hellebuyck.
“The days before, the weeks before, the months before, it’s been a process. When we met and he [Hellebuyck] asked for a trade just after the season ended in his exit physicals, that set in motion the wheels for me. I guess the different various, whatever pressure points they tried to impose, they were what they were,” Cheveldayoff said on OverDrive. “At the end of the day we had a goal set in our mind as to we were going to try and help this current team here right now, and obviously trying to help build for the future as well because you’re never gonna get a one-for-one type of deal for a player like Connor Hellebuyck in a situation like that. So again, we’re comfortable with the package we received, and now it’s just a matter of putting the past behind us and moving forward.”
The 56-year-old Cheveldayoff admitted he never felt the Jets had a chance to sway Hellebuyck’s mind when it came to staying in Winnipeg, but did let Hellebuyck’s camp know that a trade of this magnitude wasn’t going to be an easy task.
“I did impart upon them at that point in time that this is more tricky than what you expect,” explained Cheveldayoff. “I said, ‘This isn’t a centreman, this isn’t a defenceman.’ Every team’s got four centreman, every team’s got six D, eight wingers. There’s only one net on any given night. And if a team has a bona fide number one that they’re happy with and locked in and all those kind of things, then you can give me that team as a trade place, but that’s not gonna work. I just think that what we tried to impart upon, that this could take a long time.”
Hellebuyck was still not traded by the time September rolled around, leading to an unpaid suspension after failing to show up to training camp.
TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reported the Jets kept their focus on trading Hellebuyck rather than have him return to the team. Hellebuyck forfeited just under $40,000 a day while he was suspended, surrendering just under $930,000 of his yearly $7.5 million salary this season before finally being dealt to New Jersey on Friday.
Despite the off-ice distractions, the Jets showed resilience in the early portion of the season, and currently hold a 4-4-3 record.
Cheveldayoff credits his players for keeping the season on the rails, adding the group had a “chip on the shoulder” following their dismal 2025-26 season in which they finished well out of the playoff picture.
“I think going back here, the real credit is to the current players on this team that came back from a tough season last year where we didn’t achieve what we wanted and weren’t at the same level or playing on the same par as the three 50-win seasons prior to that,” he said. “So there’s a chip on the shoulder of the group that’s here. They all came back to training camp saying they wanted to prove something different. We’ve got some new players, we’ve got some young players trying to integrate them. And with young players, you hope that where they are in September and October is not where they’re going to end up being in November, December, January, February as they continue to get more experience and grow as players. That’s how you have to get better as an organization.”
Hellebuyck was selected by the Jets in the fifth round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, spending the first 11 seasons of his career in Winnipeg
Over 625 regular-season games in Winnipeg, Hellebuyck had a 345-208-55 record alongside a 2.58 goals-against average and .916 save percentage with 45 shutouts.
Hellebuyck won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie in 2020, 2024 and 2025 as well as the Hart Memorial Trophy in 2025.
Hellebuyck will make his return to Winnipeg’s Canada Life Centre as a member of the Devils on Nov. 10.
As for the reception Hellebuyck will get from Winnipeg fans?
“Yeah, I don’t know,” said the GM. “This fan base is very passionate. They are very creative. Unfortunately, I won’t be in the building that night. We’ve got GM meetings. So, you know, I’ll have to get it second-hand.”
Leaving Canada
Cheveldayoff wouldn’t divulge into the specific reasons why Hellebuyck no longer wanted to play in Manitoba’s capital, but his story isn’t an uncommon one in recent memory.
Hellebuyck became the third star American player to be dealt away from a Canadian market over the past year, joining former Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes and former Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk.
Hellebuyck, Hughes and Tkachuk were all members of the United States team that captured gold at Milano Cortina 2026 last February.
Cheveldayoff elected not to dive into the growing theory that certain players rather not play in a Canadian market, but did say what he was reminded of regarding Winnipeg and hockey during the process of trading Hellebuyck.
“I think each and every individual is going to have their different thoughts on that as players, as managers, as people on the inside or the outside,” Cheveldayoff said. “At the end of the day, someone asked me what I learned when I was in my press conference about our market during this whole ordeal. And it really wasn’t what I learned, it was what I was reminded of. And I was reminded how important this team is to the city of Winnipeg, how important the players are and the passion that the fans feel for each and every player and the connection that they feel. And that’s what drives the fandom.”
Cheveldayoff is the NHL’s longest-tenured general manger, serving his role in Winnipeg since 2011.
“I’m one of the luckiest people. I’m one of the 32 lucky guys to have a job that involves being the custodian of Winnipeg’s hockey team. And that’s how I look at it each and every day,” said Cheveldayoff.