The Winnipeg Jets missed the playoffs last season, and Connor Hellebuyck's future might decide whether that was a blip or the start of something bigger.
Winnipeg had been a model of consistency for nearly a decade, reaching the playoffs in seven of the previous nine seasons with three series wins along the way.
Last season broke that streak entirely. The Jets finished seventh in a brutal Central Division and watched the postseason from home.
That division isn't getting any easier either. Colorado, Dallas, and Minnesota look like near locks for the playoffs, while Utah, Nashville, and St-Louis are all pushing hard for a spot too.
GM Kevin Cheveldayoff spent this summer trying to develop the roster's younger players into real difference-makers, not just complementary pieces.
Everything could still hinge on Hellebuyck. If he's traded, this becomes a very different team overnight.
Winnipeg brought in insurance either way, signing goalie Stuart Skinner and longtime Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro on the open market.
Yager and Lambert face real make-or-break camps
Skinner gives Winnipeg a real fallback plan. If Hellebuyck stays, Winnipeg has one of the best goalies alive. If he goes, Skinner can absorb a heavier workload and keep the position stable.
Ferraro joins an already established blue line featuring Josh Morrissey, Neal Pionk, Dylan DeMelo, and Dylan Samberg after seven solid seasons in San Jose.
Ferraro posted 7 goals and 16 assists for 23 points in 82 games last season, steady depth for a group that already has Morrissey producing 55 points of his own.
Internally, Cole Perfetti and 2026 first-round pick Viggo Bjorck represent real upside. Perfetti posted 32 points in 68 games, entering year one of a five year deal worth $6,000,000 annually.
Perfetti and Bjorck could realistically form two-thirds of Winnipeg's second line if development goes as planned, exactly the kind of internal growth this front office is banking on.
Then there are the players facing real pressure. Brayden Yager, the 14th overall pick in 2023, managed just 10 goals and 30 points in 69 AHL games last season and has to show he's more than a minor league piece.
Brad Lambert is in an even tighter spot. He appeared in 25 NHL games last season, managing just 3 goals and 6 points, and he needs to lock down a role fast or head back to the AHL.
A move to the wing and a projected middle-six role gives Lambert a real shot to establish himself before hitting restricted free agency.
Winnipeg finished 35-35-12 for 82 points last season, 26th overall, proof this roster still has real work to do regardless of the additions made this summer.
Cheveldayoff still has all three of Winnipeg's next first round picks and roughly $4,400,000 in cap space, plenty of flexibility left to make an in-season addition if this team is competing.
With Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor, Gabriel Vilardi, and Morrissey all still in their prime, Winnipeg has the talent to get back into the playoff picture.
But if the young pieces don't answer the call quickly enough, this could just as easily turn into a second straight season on the outside looking in.
Will the Jets make the playoffs after missing out last season?
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