Jets Could Buy & Sell At Trade Deadline
The Winnipeg Jets' season has not gone anywhere close to how they envisioned it ahead of the season. They finished with the best record in the NHL in 2024-25 and made it to the second round of the playoffs, but didn't have the same start and things only got much worse.
Injuries and performances outside of the top line and a couple of defensemen have them where they are, tied for 28th in the NHL with a record of 22-26-8 and 11 points out of a playoff spot. With there only being a handful of games remaining after the NHL gets back from the break before the trade deadline, the Jets have to work quickly in figuring out just what they are going to be doing, because other teams have already figured that out.
David Pagnotta said, "They're going to, by all accounts, sell those (UFA) pieces, but...offensively it's been a challenge for them beyond that first line, and that's still something that Cheveldayoff and the staff in Winnipeg want to address."
First, if we're looking at the UFAs that could be on the table to sell, unless an imminent contract extension is coming for any of them, the trade candidates are as follows: Jonathan Toews, Cole Koepke, Gustav Nyquist, Tanner Pearson, Logan Stanley, Luke Schenn, Colin Miller, and Eric Comrie. That's a fair amount, but nobody that will really fetch a high price. Toews, Stanley, and Schenn are the most certain pieces to go if they don't re-sign, and the ones who teams will pay the most for.
Stanley is having a strong season for the role he plays and has added some offense this season. Schenn is the type of right-shot physical defenseman that is good for the playoffs where the game gets tougher. Toews's two-way game, leadership, compete, and faceoffs make him a strong depth center option for any contender questioning their center depth for the playoffs.
After losing Nikolaj Ehlers, the Jets didn't really address that loss. There will be a little bit of help coming from the system, but not enough to deal with the lack of production outside of the top line of Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, Gabriel Vilardi, and then Josh Morrissey on the back-end. Outside of those four, nobody has 10 goals and only Alex Iafallo has hit 20 points (exactly) out of the rest of the team.
With the pieces going out, trades and signings will have to help change the complexion of the majority of the team. We'll see what the Jets' GM can pull off. It's not an easy job to do in a short time.
Photo credit: © James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images
