The Winnipeg Jets are rapidly approaching the proverbial fork in the road.
With just seven games remaining before the Olympic break — and five more following the hockey hiatus leading into the NHL trade deadline on March 6 — the team’s options are beginning to crystallize.
How the Jets perform over these critical dozen contests, and the choices general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff makes in response, could shape not only the remainder of this season but the future direction of the organization.
Option No. 1: Buy
This would be difficult to justify for a team that woke up Wednesday seven points out of the final Western Conference wild-card spot, with five teams to leapfrog.
Sure, the Jets have gone 5-1-1 over the past seven games, but that’s only allowed them to gain four points on the playoff line, underscoring just how tough it is to make up ground.
There are rumblings Winnipeg continues to be in search of scoring help. Trading picks or prospects for what amounts to hope and a prayer would be foolish — and borderline negligent — for a “draft and develop” organization.
Unless they go on an incredible run over this next stretch, it’s hard to envision how this route would make any sense.
Option No. 2: Stand pat
This would allow the rest of the campaign to unfold without significant intervention.
It’s the least disruptive choice, but also one that risks prolonging a state of limbo. It would also be a terrible example of asset management and bring them no closer to the ultimate goal of being a championship contender.
Option No. 3: Sell! Sell! Sell!
With eight expiring contracts on the books and an opportunity to add some future help — while also opening up playing time down the stretch for prospects on the farm — this option is growing increasingly intriguing by the day.
And while some might scoff at the notion that a 30th-ranked team has anything of value, that’s simply not true. Winnipeg has several potentially valuable trade chips.
Here’s a closer look at who they are — and what they might be worth:
Matt Slocum / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES
Winnipeg Jets defenceman Logan Stanley is having a career year offensively with 8 goals and 8 assists so far this season.
D LOGAN STANLEY
The big man’s value may never be higher.
Stanley, 27, is having a career year offensively (8 goals, 8 assists) and should have plenty of suitors, considering six-foot-seven defencemen don’t exactly grow on trees. The value of his next contract continues to go up. Will the Jets be the one offering it to him? That’s the multi-million dollar question.
The organization has invested plenty in the 18th-overall pick from 2016, so cutting ties with him would be a difficult decision. But given the potential return — might there be a contender willing to part with a first-round pick? — Cheveldayoff has to at least explore the market.
Besides, we can’t imagine Stanley’s agent urging him to sign an extension at this point with the Jets. Why not see what July 1 might bring in that department for a player making just US$1.25 million? And the Jets can’t risk letting a suddenly lucrative asset leave for nothing.
Joe Puetz / The Associated Press files
Winnipeg Jets centre Jonathan Toews.
C JONATHAN TOEWS
At some point, a very interesting discussion — and decision — with Toews is likely going to be required.
Would the 37-year-old be willing to go play for a third organization should the Jets ultimately punt on this season? Sure, Toews was brought in with the idea of adding playoff experience, but if Winnipeg isn’t even in the dance, is it time to pivot?
Toews has really picked up his game since the Christmas break, and we’d expect a similar bounce coming out of the Olympic hiatus. He had several teams pursuing him last summer, and you wonder if some of those who missed out — Tampa Bay and Colorado, for example, and maybe even Montreal and Edmonton — would now take another run at him.
Three-time Cup winners are a rare breed, so the Jets might be able to flip the hometown product into something substantial. A second-round pick, perhaps?
JOE PUETZ / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES
Jets D-man Luke Schenn has informed the team he’s open to a change of scenery.
D LUKE SCHENN
At first blush, the depth defenceman likely wouldn’t bring much in return.
His game has slipped considerably, and there’s no chance the Jets are getting anything close to what they paid for him (a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick) at least year’s deadline.
However, Schenn’s value could be juiced if he is ultimately part of a multi-team deal that also brings brother, Brayden, to a Cup contender. There’s plenty of talk in the industry that could happen, so the Jets could ultimately reap some reward, even if it’s in the form of a mid to late-round pick.
Schenn has informed the Jets he’s open to a change of scenery. If nothing else, moving the 36-year-old out opens the door for top blue-line prospect Elias Salomonsson to get regular playing time down the stretch.
Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Winnipeg Jets goaltender Eric Comrie has played fantastic recently, turning aside 45 of 47 shots in his last two starts. Connor Hellebuyck’s dedicated understudy banks just US$825,000, making him a target for a top team to poach.
G ERIC COMRIE
A name that nobody is really talking about — but perhaps they should be.
While he may not be able to carry the heavy workload of a starter, Comrie is a perfectly capable backup who is making just US$825,000 and could be targeted by a top contender either looking to upgrade its No. 2 or even No. 3 position for injury insurance.
Comrie has had two straight terrific starts, stopping 45 of 47 shots in wins over Los Angeles and St. Louis. Moving him would also allow the Jets to promote Thomas Milic and/or Dom DiVincentiis for some NHL work down the stretch.
And the Jets could always re-sign Comrie in the summer for what would be his fourth stint with the organization as Connor Hellebuyck’s understudy.
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F TANNER PEARSON
It wasn’t that long ago Pearson looked like a guy who could probably pass through waivers unclaimed.
But the 33-year-old has picked up his play as of late and is now up to seven goals through 43 games, with three of them coming this month.
The return would likely be extremely limited — think very late-round draft pick — but there could be a market for Pearson, who won a Stanley Cup with Los Angeles in his rookie year and has 765 regular-season games and 59 playoff games of experience.
He’s still solid on the forecheck and has a good set of hands and a powerful shot while making just US$1 million.
Matt Slocum / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES
Jets forward Cole Koepke.
F COLE KOEPKE
Like Pearson, we wouldn’t expect a bidding war for his services.
But the 27-year-old does have some intriguing intangibles including size and speed, and a bit of a scoring touch. Koepke is up to nine points (3G, 6A) in 33 games with the Jets this year but hasn’t been able to establish himself as a regular.
He had 10 goals for Boston a year ago, and he’s the type of player who could help a playoff team either on the fourth line or as a depth forward. He’s also making just US$1 million.
D COLIN MILLER
He’s currently dealing with an injury which just required a surgical procedure but is expected back in the next few weeks.
There’s probably not a ton of value to be found, but Miller does have a blistering shot and could be a depth add on the blue line. The 33-year-old is making just US$1.5 million, so an acquiring team wouldn’t have to break the bank.
Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Winnipeg Jets forward Gustav Nyquist has netted zero goals in thirty-two games so far this season, a far cry from his peak 2023-24 season with the Nashville Predators.
F GUSTAV NYQUIST
Thirty-two games. Zero goals.
It’s been a nightmare season for Nyquist, who signed a one-year, US$3.25 million contract with the Jets in the hopes he’d help provide some secondary scoring after the departure of Nikolaj Ehlers in free agency.
At this point, we can’t imagine there’s any type of market for the 36-year-old, who represents a major swing-and-miss by Cheveldayoff and his pro scouting department.
BONUS ROUND
They both still have one more year on their contracts, but we’ll throw Nino Niederreiter and Vlad Namestnikov into the conversation.
David Zalubowski / THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILES
Jets winger Nino Niederreiter recently played his 1,000th game.
While the pair of 33-year-old skaters have struggled through large stretches this season — Niederreiter has 18 points (7G, 11A) and Namestnikov has 12 points (7G, 5A) — they represent chips Cheveldayoff could play if he wants to reshape his roster in a significant way.
The Jets are currently the oldest roster in the NHL, so finding a way to get younger and — by extension — quicker, should be a priority.
Niederreiter, who recently played his 1,000th game and will be representing Switzerland at the Olympics, is making US$4 million. Namestnikov is signed for US$3 million. They have been good soldiers for this organization, signing extensions following their initial acquisition at the 2023 trade deadline, but perhaps a fresh start would be prudent for all parties.
The price would have to be right for Cheveldayoff to pull the trigger but, in a seller’s market and given the current state of his squad, it should at least be considered.
winnipegfreepress.com/mikemcintyre
Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike.
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