Winnipeg Jets Strip Veteran Forward of Captaincy

The Winnipeg Jets have announced that they will be entering the 2022-23 season without a captain and instead will have a group of alternate captains. As a result, Blake Wheeler has been stripped of the 'C.'

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— Winnipeg Jets PR (@WpgJetsPR) September 16, 2022

Perhaps this isn't the most shocking of developments, as the Jets are in need of change. They are coming off of an underwhelming 2021-22 season that had them end the year with a 39-32-11 record and miss the playoff. With their core, this kind of year is entirely unacceptable. With that, there have been rumblings of chaos in their locker room, so having a new leader is probably the best course of action.

Wheeler was in the rumor mill this offseason, too, but a trade was never finalized. His $8.25 million cap hit until the end of the 2023-24 season is likely the reason behind this. Although he is certainly still a top-six winger, that is a lot of money to spend on an aging forward.

Wheeler put together another strong season in 2021-22, however, as he had 17 goals and 60 points in 65 games. Thus, he was almost a point-per-game player, but this decision seemed like a necessary one at the end of the day.