The Winnipeg Jets recalled Brayden Yager from the Manitoba Moose this morning and placed Josh Morrissey on injured reserve.
The IR placement is retroactive to Oct. 7. The wrist injury is expected to keep the 31-year-old out until at least Nov. 1.
That stings. He had 3 assists in 4 games, and 2 of those came on the power play.
Yager plays forward, so the recall does nothing to patch the back end.
Vladislav Namestnikov is also sidelined up front with an undisclosed issue and isn't expected back until at least Oct. 30.
The bottom six has room for a push. Viggo Bjorck, 18, has been held scoreless through 8 games and sits at minus-4.
Brad Lambert hasn't scored in 7 games either. If Yager wants to make a case, the door could open tomorrow night in St. Louis.
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Connor Hellebuyck trade limbo still hangs over the Jets crease
And the bigger story in Winnipeg still hasn't moved. The Jets are still waiting on the Connor Hellebuyck trade.
His $8,500,000 cap hit still sits on Winnipeg's books while the market sorts itself out.
Meanwhile, Stuart Skinner has carried the crease. He's 3-0-2 over 5 games with a .906 save percentage.
Clay Stevenson has 3 appearances and a .893 save percentage, which won't calm anybody's nerves.
This limbo is a bad look for Kevin Cheveldayoff. Every week it drags on, the Jets carry a cap anchor and a goalie question nobody in the locker room can answer.
It's like trying to rearrange a living room while a couch you already sold still blocks the doorway. Nothing else fits until it's gone.
Who runs the power play from the point now? Neal Pionk has 6 points in 8 games, but only 1 came with the man advantage.
Depth on the blue line gets tested immediately. Haydn Fleury, Tyrell Bauer and Jack St. Ivany have 4 games apiece, and Fleury has gone minus-3.
Kyle Connor is doing his part with 8 goals, 4 on the power play. Mark Scheifele has 8 points over his last 5 games.
Even so, Winnipeg sits at minus-1 in goal differential and has dropped two straight, including a 3-2 loss to Carolina on Saturday.
St. Louis is 3-4-1 and has also lost two in a row. Dallas waits on Thursday.
Scott Arniel now has to decide whether Yager gets real minutes on this road trip or watches from the press box. And the Hellebuyck phone call still hasn't come.
Should the Jets have traded Connor Hellebuyck before the season started?
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