You know what’s awesome? In less than one week time, we will be watching the Winnipeg Jets play hockey.
Of course, the start of the regular season is a ways away yet but the Jets are once again participating in the Vancouver Canucks-run Young Stars Classic in Penticton, B.C. The Jets have been in the tournament every year since they moved back to the 204, save for the 2012 edition which was cancelled due to the lockout.
The Jets announced their roster on Friday and it’s full of guys we have covered extensively in the off-season. Nic Petan, Nikolaj Ehlers, Andrew Copp, and Brendan Lemieux are among the names up front for the Jets. Josh Morrissey headlines the defence while the tandem of Connor Hellebuyck and Eric Comrie will tend goal.
Puck Prose
The full roster can be seen here. Every player on the roster was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets with the exception of three: Lemieux, who was acquired in the blockbuster with Buffalo earlier this calendar year and Axel Blomqvist, the towering forward who the Jets signed as an undrafted free agent back in 2013.
The only invited player is forward Jiri Fronk. He had 29 goals and 50 points in 60 games with the USHL’s Cedar Rapids RoughRiders in his first season in North America as a twenty-year old player last year. Fronk, a native of the Czech Republic, was ranked #151 by NHL Central Scouting before the 2015 draft but was not selected.
Winnipeg starts the tournament on September 11 in the afternoon, when they take on Calgary at 4 p.m. After an off-day, they’ll have a 2 o’clock start against Edmonton on Sunday and wrap the tournament up the following day against Edmonton while you’re cutting class/work at 11:30 a.m.
The Jets will have all three games broadcasted on TSN 1290 and as well online at winnipegjets.com. The team will practice at the IcePlex on the 10th at noon before departing to Penticton.
More from Jets White Out
- How expansion and relocation around the league have affected the Winnipeg Jets
- 5 interesting Winnipeg Jets prospects to check out at the Young Stars Classic
- 3 takeaways from Adam Lowry being named captain
- What to think about Nikolaj Ehlers and his dynamic skill set?
- Winnipeg Jets name Adam Lowry team captain