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Winnipeg Jets: 5 burning questions for 2018-19 season

By Bruin Belisle

WINNIPEG, MB - MAY 12: Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck #37 and Dustin Byfuglien #33 of the Winnipeg Jets celebrate following a 4-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game One of the Western Conference Final during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Bell MTS Place on May 12, 2018 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Jets lead the series 1-0. (Photo by Darcy Finley/NHLI via Getty Images)
WINNIPEG, MB - MAY 12: Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck #37 and Dustin Byfuglien #33 of the Winnipeg Jets celebrate following a 4-2 victory over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game One of the Western Conference Final during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Bell MTS Place on May 12, 2018 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Jets lead the series 1-0. (Photo by Darcy Finley/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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WINNIPEG, MB – MAY 20: Connor Hellebuyck #37 of the Winnipeg Jets allows a goal to Ryan Reaves #75 of the Vegas Golden Knights (not pictured) during the second period in Game Five of the Western Conference Finals during the 2018 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Bell MTS Place on May 20, 2018 in Winnipeg, Canada. (Photo by Jason Halstead/Getty Images) /

2. What happens if Connor Hellebuyck goes down?

Oh boy. You never want to talk about injuries to any player but if Hellebuyck happens to suffer any form of injury next season, the drop-off in goaltending is very steep in Winnipeg.

Hellebuyck is coming off his best season in the NHL. The 25-year-old ‘tender had a .924 save percentage and a 2.32 goals against average through the 2017-18 season. This was enough to earn him a Vezina Trophy nomination.

Given his age and the group of defensemen in front of him, there’s no way Hellebuyck’s stats drop-off this coming year. He is going to be at least as good, if not better than he was last year. The only thing that might hurt “Helley” this season is too much work.

The Winnipeg Jets do not have a viable back up goaltender. Last season, Hellebuyck was backed by Steve Mason and Michael Hutchinson, both of whom are now gone to Montreal and Florida respectively. Their current back up is Laurent Brossoit.

If you are wondering who Laurent Brossoit is, you are not alone. Brossoit played 28 games over the last four seasons for the Edmonton Oilers. He sports an .897 save percentage and a 2.98 goals against average. This isn’t exactly a reliable backup who is able to give Hellebuyck a decent number of nights off.

For the Jets to be successful next season, they’ll need to find a serviceable back up sooner rather than later. Ideally, they’d have someone they can plug-in for around 20 games to give Helley rest if he needs it and/or keep him fresh for a long playoff run.

The Jets also have Mikhail Berdin and Eric Comrie in their minor league system. While it would be surprising if one of these two becomes the go-to second string goaltender, they are both young and might come into their own in the near future.

For now, the Jets are putting everything on Hellebuyck and if he misses an extended period of time for any reason whatsoever, it could spell trouble for a team with its eyes set on the Stanley Cup. They will likely get some decent games out of Brossoit, but he’s not going to win you any big ones.

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