Winnipeg Jets: Top 3 New Prospects to Keep an Eye on in 2021-2022
The Winnipeg Jets have some new prospects in their organization. Here are three new prospects to keep an eye on during the 2021-2022 season.
With the Winnipeg Jets kicking off their pro minicamp this past Thursday, which features some of the top prospects in the Jets organization on the ice together, many people are looking to the future of the Jets and there is an immense amount of excitement regarding this pool of young talented players.
Our site has been looking at the likes of Ville Heniola, Cole Perfetti, and Dylan Samberg as players to watch out for, but after the draft this offseason, there are some new prospects that fans should watch, and keep tabs on their development during the upcoming season.
This slideshow will look at three new Jets prospects and why you should keep an eye on them during the upcoming season.
3. Chaz Lucius
We start our list with the Jets’ first-round draft pick and the eighteenth overall selection from this past summer’s NHL Entry Draft, Chaz Lucius.
After a successful stint at the United States National Development Program, Lucius is attending the University of Minnesota and his freshman season will begin at the end of September.
Lucius is known as a pure goal scorer with an outstanding shot. In 2019-2020, Lucius led the United States Under-17 team with 31 goals during the season, but unfortunately, he did not play most of last season due to a knee injury he suffered prior to the season. When the eighteen-year-old did return from his injury, he put up some outstanding numbers scoring 13 goals in 13 games with the U.S. Under-18 team.
The centerman definitely has outstanding potential and can be the next pure goalscorer in the future for the Jets.
Lucius will definitely be tested this season with the Golden Gophers and it should be fun to watch his talents on full display against some tough collegiate competition. Lucius and the Gophers play in the Big Ten which features some great teams and NHL draft picks, including the first overall pick in the 2021 Owen Power who plays for the University of Michigan, and Minnesota will also play a tough out-of-conference schedule.
2. Tyrel Bauer
The nineteen-year-old and right-handed shot defenseman, Tyrel Bauer was drafted by the Jets in the sixth round of the 2020 draft. Although Bauer has yet to sign a contract with Winnipeg, he is currently skating at the Jets pro minicamp and will be attending training camp on a tryout contract next week.
Bauer is not a defenseman who will light up the scoresheet as he only has seven goals and 31 assists in 149 Western Hockey League games, rather he is a defensive defenseman who shuts down top opposing goal scorers.
Bauer has skated the past three seasons for the Seattle Thunderbirds and in 2019-2020 he was named the club’s defenseman of the year while also being named by the Thunderbirds Booster Club as their most popular player of the year.
The Alberta native is also known for his leadership qualities as he was Seattle’s assistant captain in 2019-2020 and was their captain during the shortened 2021 season. Bauer is also listed as their captain for this upcoming season.
Bauer is a highly rated prospect in the Jets organization and will definitely be tested at training camp. Bauer is a player that you should watch over the next season as he looks to impress the Jets coaching staff and ultimately sign a contract with the franchise.
1. Dmitri Kuzmin
The eighteen-year-old Dmitri Kuzmin is undersized compared to many other defensemen as he only stands five feet and ten inches tall and weighs 176 pounds, but he is someone who looks to be rated highly by the Jets front office.
For people who do not know much about the left-handed Belorussian defenseman, he was drafted by Winnipeg in the third round of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft and he is the only player from the Jets’ 2021 draft class that has signed an entry-level contract with the franchise.
To add to this, Kuzmin was invited to both Jets minicamp and main training camp and will be the youngest player featuring at both. This just goes to show what the Jets think of his potential.
The reason to keep a close eye on Kuzmin during this season is because he has yet to feature in North America. Kuzmin was supposed to play the 2020-2021 season with the Flint Firebirds of the OHL, but after the OHL canceled their season, he decided to stay home and play in Belarus.
There is no indication on what team Kuzmin will be applying his trade for when the season begins, but if he does play in North America, it will be interesting to see how his game translates to the smaller ice surface and against different opponents.
It will also be interesting to watch how Kuzmin fares at Jets training camp especially against an extremely talented group of Jets’ forwards. There is also a chance we can see the young defenseman play in a preseason game.
Kuzmin has the potential to be a stalwart on the Winnipeg Jets’ blueline in the future and he is one player that you should definitely watch during the 2021-2022 season.
Winnipeg Jets Fans: Which Winnipeg Jets prospect are you most excited to watch during the upcoming season? Leave your comments below!
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*All Stats Provided by Elite Prospects*