Along with the return of Drew Stafford, the resigning of Alexander Burmistrov has made the most noise in the Winnipeg Jets offseason so far.
Burmistrov departed the Jets following the 2012–13 season for the Kontinental Hockey League. The two sides didn’t leave on the best of terms, most of which was attributed to Burmistrov’s much-talked about relationship with then-Head Coach Claude Noel (“Everyone knows why I left,” he said recently). But during his two-year hiatus in Russia, the Jets maintained his rights and have now brought him back into the fold.
As it stands right now, a good bet is Burmistrov will start the season as a winger on the third line with Adam Lowry centering and potentially Nik Ehlers on the opposite wing, although Head Coach Paul Maurice says he is juggling four different ideas. Another thought being talked about among fans is placing Burmistrov on the wing with Andrew Ladd and Bryan Little. Although I can’t envision him on that line to start the season, a lot can happen between now and the season opener.
He also will help fill the void of Michael Frolik, who signed a five-year contract with the Calgary Flames with an AAV of $4.3-million dollars. Over the course of their NHL careers, Frolik has been the better offensive player, but Burmistrov’s versatility is close to Frolik’s, which I often thought was one of the latter’s better assets. Maurice has already stated he’s a fan of having centres playing on the wing in case of injury.
There is also Burmistrov’s ability to kill penalties. As good as a penalty killer as Frolik is, when he first came to Winnipeg, he was asked to help fill the void on the PK left by Burmistrov’s departure. Burmistrov was also a positive possession player in his first stint with Winnipeg and does have the skill set to be able to play in the top-six if needed, much like Frolik.
It will be interesting to see how Burmistrov produces this time around. He’s still only 23 years old. In his current projected role, there might not be as much pressure on him to produce instant offense for Jets. That will hopefully allow him to be a defensive and puck possessing presence for the team while continuing to grow as an offensive player. I would think a projection of 30-35 points this year is a positive and fair expectation to place on him.
He’s also now playing for a head coach who seems genuinely excited to have Burmistrov on his team. Player development at the NHL level has been a night and day difference under Maurice and hopefully the trend continues with Burmistrov.