Winnipeg Jets Have Strong Future Between the Pipes
My co-captain on this ship, Andrei Lutz, wrote last week about the goaltending situation for the Winnipeg Jets in the upcoming season. While Ondrej Pavelec and Michael Hutchinson will likely carry the load for the Jets this year, that tandem likely doesn’t represent a future much past the 2015-16 season with a strong group of prospects at the position.
One of the game’s most prized goaltending prospects, Connor Hellebuyck, played 58 games for the AHL’s St. John’s Ice Caps last year in his first professional season and he’ll likely grab a lion’s share of the playing time once again for the Jets’ top affialite, now just down the hall at the MTS Centre. But it was what Hellebuyck did away from the Jets organization that had many people buzzing.
Hellebuyck led Team USA to a bronze medal at the 2015 World Championship, posting a 7-1 record (the most wins by a U.S. goaltender at the event since 1939), a 1.37 goals against average and a sparkling .948 save percentage. Those numbers become even more eye-popping when you factor in his aforementioned one year of professional experience and only one game dressed in the National Hockey League as a backup. He’ll start with the Manitoba Moose but he’ll be waiting in the wings should either Pavelec or Hutchinson stop earning their keep with the Winnipeg Jets.
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Eric Comrie is projected to back up Hellebuyck this year with the Moose. Comrie, a member of Canada’s gold medal winning world junior squad last year, will be exposed to his first full season of professional hockey this year after four strong seasons with the Western Hockey League’s Tri-City Americans. Comrie would likely be the goaltending jewel in a lot of other NHL systems, but he should still get an opportunity to play and develop behind Hellebuyck in the minors.
The one word scouting report on Comrie would be “workhorse.” He played in 60 games for the Americans last year, a number that would have been higher had he not participated in the World Juniors. And for those wondering, yes, they are related. Eric is Mike’s half-brother.
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The third member of this list is Jamie Phillips. General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff took a flyer on the then-Junior A goaltender in the seventh round of the 2012 draft – coincidentally, the same draft in which Hellebuyck was chosen in the fifth round. Phillips then committed to Michigan Tech, where he spent his first two seasons as a backup.
Last year, Phillips emerged as the Huskies starter and dominated the WCHA. He played in 41 games, posting a 1.74 GAA and a .933 save percentage. He went 28-9, led Michigan Tech to the WCHA championship game, and earned himself a nomination for the Hobey Baker Award as the top player in college hockey. All of a sudden, the Jets had a third head on their goaltending prospect monster.
Phillips will head back to Michigan Tech for his senior season and will still need to sign with the Jets at the end of the college season. While Hellebuyck and Comrie will be collecting minutes in the Jets organization this year, it will be interesting to keep an eye on Phillips, who will be returning to the collegiate ranks as one of the top goaltenders in the country.