Connor Hellebuyck Was The Starter All Along For Jets
By Trin Potratz
When the Winnipeg Jets signed Steve Mason to a two-year contract in the offseason, a lot of Jet fans wondered what that would mean for Connor Hellebuyck.
After all, Hellebuyck appeared in 56 games last season. That’s a starter’s workload. Unfortunately, Hellebuyck was unable to give the Jets quality goaltending throughout the entire season. It’s no secret goaltending has been the Jets Achilles heal and GM Kevin Cheveldayoff had no choice but to attempt to upgrade the position.
ADDING STEVE MASON IN FREE AGENCY
On July 1, Cheveldayoff signed former Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Steve Mason to a two-year deal with an average of $4.1 million per season. In an interview with TSN’s Bob McKenzie, Cheveldayoff stated that Mason was signed to be the number one goaltender and to allow Connor Hellebuyck to develop in a backup role.
The acquisition was met with criticism and rightfully so. Mason may have a Vezina Trophy nomination and a Calder Trophy on his belt, but that was a product of an unbelievable run as a 20-year-old in Columbus. Since that season, Mason has been a mediocre goaltender.
While Cheveldayoff said Mason was brought in to be the starter, it may have just been politics. It’s not out of the realm to believe Mason was brought in to take the pressure off Hellebuyck and allow him to take the reins of the crease on his own terms.
It makes sense because Mason was signed to a short-term deal and the Jets will have the cap space to handle paying a backup goaltender a high salary next season.
TAKING A PAGE FROM THE CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS PLAYBOOK
A similar situation happened in Chicago after they won the Stanley Cup in 2010 with Antti Niemi between the pipes. The Hawks let Niemi walk away in arbitration and needed a new starting goaltender. They had a prospect in Corey Crawford waiting in the wings but logically they couldn’t just hand over the starting role to a completely unproven goaltender.
At the time, Crawford had appeared in only nine NHL games and was coming off a season with the Rockford IceHogs where he only had a modest .909 save percentage. The Hawks then signed former Dallas Stars starter Marty Turco and lauded him as the starting goaltender. By the end of the season, Crawford had appeared in 57 games, while Turco appeared in only 29.
The early results see a thriving Connor Hellebuyck and a struggling Steve Mason. Hellebuyck has won all four of his starts. Steve Mason has lost all three of his starts. You tell me who the real starter is.
Yes, the season is still young and a lot can change, but it looks as if Connor Hellebuyck is not only the goalie of the future, but also the goalie of the present. Hellebuyck has been giving the Jets a chance to win in every game and that’s all the team can ask for.
If Hellebuyck has a few hiccups, Mason has proven he can get hot in stretches, but he is unable to consistently play at a high level. Consider Hellebuyck the 1A and Mason the 1B, but we should expect to see the two goaltenders split the duties much like Corey Crawford and Marty Turco did in the 2010-11 season with the Chicago Blackhawks.