Kyle Connor Extension Numbers Soaring to New Heights As Talks Advance

It's been a tough preseason for the Winnipeg Jets, who have now lost Cole Perfetti to the start the season in addition to Dylan Samberg going down for six to eight weeks. On the bright side, the Jets and All-Star forward Kyle Connor, a pending unrestricted free agent, are making progress on an extension.

According to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period, it will come at a hefty cap hit cost.

Jets GM Kevyn Chevaldayoff and Connor's camp remain engaged in ongoing discussions on a long-term extension, according to league sources, with a 7 to 8 year deal goal for both sides...
(They) are working towards a new deal that may pay Connor in between $12 million and $13 million per season. The hope is to finalize a deal before the team's season begins on Thursday.

AFP Analytics had projected an extension value of eight years at $12 million annually for the Jets' star. The asking prices of all of the top pending UFAs, of which Connor is one, have gone up since the market-setting blockbuster $17M AAV that Kirill Kaprizov signed for with the Minnesota Wild.

Could Kyle Connor get as much as a $14M AAV on his extension?

Other recent rumors out of Winnipeg had suggested a range of $12M to $14M was possible for the star winger's next deal. "At this point, a $14 million AAV on an eight-year deal wouldn’t faze me at all," wrote Murat Ates in The Athletic.

Connor, 28, had his second 40+ goal season last year (41) along with a career-high 97 points with a personal best plus/minus rating of +17.

He's wrapping up a seven-year, $50 million contract with a $7.142 million cap hit.