The Winnipeg Jets lineup predictions are back! They weren’t gone all that long, but whatever. The defense is pretty much set, let’s be honest. But there’s a new backup goaltender.
The Winnipeg Jets haven’t done much on the back end. Well, they haven’t done much on the front end, either, but hey. They have retained much of their own wealth, and that’s half the battle.
They added a new goaltender to compete for the backup mix, but his competition is currently still an RFA. I’m not too worried about that, or Josh Morrissey.
I’m not even worried about the defense. The top six forward group could use a boost, but hey, that’s another topic. Without further ado, the blueline.
The Top Pair
Easy. Josh Morrissey played mostly on the top pair last year, and he was fantastic. A huge boon for a team competing for a title to produce a stud young defenseman like this. Good stuff. He’ll be joined by….Dustin Byfuglien. Big Buff is the dude.
The marauding, slap-shotting hero deserves this spot. I hope maybe they’ll scale his workload down, but he’s so important to this team. That’s a very good top pair. Duh, a good team has a great top pair of D-men.
The Second Duo
This one also doesn’t come with a whole lot of uncertainty. Jacob Trouba gets another year as a top 4 guy to prove he deserves a long-term deal. Let’s just hope he stays healthy. At his side? Big old Tyler Myers. Love the guy.
Myers flies a bit under the radar, being the fourth best defenseman on the team. Hard for someone that tall to fly under anything, but hey, he’s done a really good job since coming over from the Buffalo Sabres.
The Back Two
Look, there’s no fun free agent addition I can squeeze back here, as I did with Rick Nash on the forward side. He’ll eat into the team’s cap space pretty good, anyway. Unless Brady Skjei or Darnell Nurse don’t get RFA deals, Free Agency isn’t our option.
Anyway, Dmitry Kulikov is still on the roster and he’s just fine as a fifth defenseman. There’s nothing spectacular about him, but there rarely is on the third pairing. He’s sturdy. Beside him?
Tobias Enstrom and Ben Chiarot are the obvious options. Tucker Poolman and Sami Niku, who scored a goal in his only game last season, are there too. But give me Joseph Morrow.
Old Joe Morrow will go down in the Winnipeg Jets history books for scoring the game-winner in their first playoff win in franchise history. But he’s also a serviceable defenseman, and he’s only 26. I like it.
The Netminders
Connor Hellebuyck is the starter. You know, the guy who just got the six year, $37MM deal? The one who finished as the Vezina runner-up? The one who set a record for wins by American-born goalies? Yeah, he’s you’re starter. No question.
The backup? Well, the Winnipeg Jets salary-dumped Steve Mason and his $4.1MM cap hit so that they could re-sign Stastny. It didn’t work out. Mason is no great loss. He’s a UFA, by the way, Montreal cut ties.
They do have prospect Eric Comrie, who played three forgettable games last year. They also signed Laurent Brossoit, who has an 80 grade name and 20 grade prior statistics. Regardless, he wouldn’t be the first person to struggle with Edmonton.
The sixth rounder with just 28 games of NHL experience gets my vote. Comrie is a former second rounder and the better bet to be good long-term, but I believe in Brossoit as a backup. I imagine the two will end up splitting time. But give me BROSSOIT!
Next: Five Reasons Jets Could Improve in 2018-2019
So, here’s where we’re at:
- Morrissey-Byfuglien
- Trouba-Myers
- Kulikov-Morrow
Then, Connor Hellebuyck and Laurent Brossoit as the goaltending tandem. Don’t be surprised to see Hellebuyck with a big workload next season. *groan*.