Winnipeg Jets Morning Papers

Note: The Jets had a practice on Monday as they prepared for today’s game against the Kraken where we learned Nino Niederreiter is expected to be ready to return to the lineup after missing the last five games. Morning skate for the Jets gets underway at 10:30 AM CDT. All the relevant news will be posted in the pre-game report so check back for that. Puck drop is at 7 PM CDT.

Note II: This evening, after the final buzzer sounds between Winnipeg and Seattle, we want you to be part of the conversation on the Illegal Curve Post-Game Show as we discuss and analyze the results of the game.

Note III: The Moose practiced in Winnipeg yesterday and today they will take off for Milwaukee where they will start their final road trip of the regular season when they take on the Admirals on Wednesday night.

Note IV: The big news on Monday was that Jets prospect Rutger McGroarty will be returning to Michigan for the 2024-25 season.

Jets news:

Winnipeg Sun: Jets Snapshots. In this piece Ted wrote about: 1) Vilardi’s been working on ‘magic hands’ since he was a kid. 2) McGroarty going back to Michigan. 3) Jets focused on clinching second place against Kraken.

Winnipeg Sun: Jets Niederreiter ready to roll after suffering scary slice. Had he not been wearing the cut resistant socks it likely would have been a much worse situation. 

Winnipeg Sun: Awards would be nice, but Hellebuyck just happy Jets playing best hockey at right time. The good thing about the Jennings Award is that it really is a team award showing a commitment to being a stingy defensive team. The only shame is that Laurent Brossoit didn’t get into the 25 games necessary to have his name on the award. Of course while it’s nice to win a trophy the focus is on the ultimate prize in hockey. 

Winnipeg Free Press: Niederreiter returns to Jets after scary injury. (Paywall). Amazing how ever when players take precautions as Niederreiter did, injury can still occur. 

Global News: Jets’ season could set new franchise standard. This Jets club has evoked a lot of comparisons but positively it has trended towards the 2017-18 team which did something no other NHL team in Winnipeg had ever done which was to make it into round three of the Stanley Cup playoffs.  

Jets prospect news:

Winnipeg Free Press: Big-league dreams on hold. (Paywall). While some fans are angsty at the prospect of the other first rounder from 2022 heading back for a third year of college the prospect of wearing the ‘C’ for that storied program and trying to get them over the hump in the Frozen Four, in addition to the reality that he would be unlikely to be in the NHL next season, are all likely drivers of this decision. 

The Athletic Winnipeg: Jets top prospect Rutger McGroarty returning to Michigan: Why he made this decision. (Paywall). When two more of his teammates signed pro deals on Monday there was some thought he would join them (Gavin Brindley and Dylan Duke) and Frank Nazar, who made his NHL debut and scored with the Hawks, in the pros. Of course if you look at the teams there is a lot more opportunity with them then there will be with the Jets next season. 

Jets video:

TSN: How playoff-ready are the Jets for the Avalanche? The Jets were in some turbulent times not so long ago but they have turned things around at the right time, tallying six straight wins as the playoffs approach. How ready are they to face the Avalanche? How lucky did Nino Niederreiter get with his injury? TSN Jets reporter John Lu discusses.

CBC: Jets co-owner Mark Chipman loves competing against big teams as a small market. Mark Chipman says his company, True North Sports and Entertainment, has never lost money given all its revenue streams, including ticket sales, merchandising, broadcast rights and revenue sharing within the league. He adds True North’s profits have been reinvested into the Canada Life Centre.