The Winnipeg Jets’ general manager, Kevin Cheveldayoff, shared some thoughts about the team’s younger players during the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in Edmonton.
He said, “The ball’s in their court. If you’re a young player in our organization right now, it’s all in front of you, there for the taking.” He wasn’t vague; he specifically mentioned Logan Stanley, Ville Heinola, Brad Lambert, Nikita Chibrikov, and Cole Perfetti.
The quote is notable because Scott Arniel is bringing a big change to the Jets’ philosophy.
Shifting Strategies:
For years, Winnipeg has been known to take its time with prospects. Most young talents spend several years in minor or junior leagues before making it to the NHL. Even then, they often find themselves in depth roles for much of the season. Heinola, Lambert, and Chibrikov spent last year mostly in the minors. The Jets had a healthy blue line throughout 2023-24 which kept Heinola from being called up.
But things might change this year with key players leaving through buyouts and free agency. A strong training camp could mean a full-time NHL role for these youngsters.
Fans might think this new approach could finally give their favorite young players more ice time.
Perfetti’s journey has been different compared to others like Stanley. Perfetti has been with the Jets full-time for two years and played 71 games last season. It was his best season yet with 19 goals and 38 points.
Despite this success, he only averaged 13:35 of ice time per game which ranked him 12th among forwards who played at least 15 games. Many believe he deserves a top-six role and it will be interesting to see how Arniel uses him this season.
Stanley might feel envious of Perfetti’s situation. The towering defenseman saw his average ice time drop from 15:39 over 58 games in 2021-22 to just 13:46 over 25 games last season. He’s already shown he’s capable as a shutdown defenseman and could fill Nate Schmidt’s former role.
Arniel now faces the task of filling gaps left by Schmidt, Sean Monahan, Tyler Toffoli, and possibly Nikolaj Ehlers if they want to stay competitive in the tough Central Division.
What do you think? Will these changes help or hurt the team?
