The Winnipeg Jets are at the midway point of their season, and with that comes General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff addressing the media.
On the morning of Thursday, Jan 11, Cheveldayoff spoke for roughly 35 minutes to members of the local media. There were questions about his Trade Deadline plans, what he attributes the teams’ early-season success to, and much more. Here are four takeaways from what he had to say on Thursday morning.
Jets’ GM Remains Reserved on Trade Deadline Plans
With the early success of the team, many fans are wondering where the Jets may look to add at the Trade Deadline. Cheveldayoff has typically been active at the Trade Deadline in the past, even last season, when he added both Nino Niederreiter and Vladislav Namestnikov who later signed contract extensions with the organization. While he may look to add yet again this year, he held back from making any statements about what could come in the near future.
“I know I frustrated a lot of people when I stood up here at the podium at the end of the season and I said ‘I have to evaluate, we all have to evaluate, and we have to take stock into where things may or may not go, and how we’re gonna handle it.’ And you might be frustrated with me here at the end of this podium today because I’m not going to make any bold proclamations about anything coming up here.”
With Cheveldayoff’s past deadline acquisitions, such as Namestnikov, Niederreiter, and Paul Stastny in 2017-18, they usually come as a surprise. Media outlets release their “trade bait” boards, and the Jets find themselves going off the board more often than not.
The Jets’ GM spoke to the factors that come into play around the Trade Deadline, and the circumstances surrounding the team which could be vastly different when we hit early March.
Jets’ Kevin Cheveldayoff Contributes Early Success to the Players
When asked about the personal pride he feels in this team being atop the standings, he deferred the credit to the players: “I’m excited for these guys, because they are the ones that execute. At the end of the day, Bones can put a plan in place, I can get fortunate and sign guys and trade for guys, but at the end of the day it’s these players playing for those fans and that’s really what it’s all about.”
It is safe to say that Cheveldayoff has gotten fortunate with his signings and trades. When you look at his track record in the calendar year 2023, it has been an incredibly impressive run for the General Manager. He executed the Gabriel Vilardi trade, signed Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele, and later extended Niederreiter as well. He has built an incredibly deep roster, with plenty of drafted and developed players leading the charge.
The 2023-24 Winnipeg Jets are an incredibly deep group, and they are currently in the midst of a historic defensive run. They have gone 31 straight games allowing three goals or less, 18 straight games allowing two goals or less in regulation, and they have set franchise records of both a winning streak (eight games) and a points streak (14 games, 12-0-2).
Related: Winnipeg Jets’ Defensive Dominance Reaching Historical Levels
Cheveldayoff had a huge role in putting this team together, drafting and developing star talent, and supporting that core with immense depth throughout the lineup.
One of those players he drafted, and has developed this season, is Cole Perfetti. When asked about Perfetti’s career-best season up until this point, Cheveldayoff referred to a time when another star forward took a huge leap at the NHL level: “You talk about how teams have success, and I remember back talking to Paul Maurice when Kyle Connor was going up and down, and we sent him down at the beginning of the year and I said to Paul: ‘Okay Paul we’ll send him down, but I’ll tell you right now, if this team is going to do anything, it’s because a guy like Kyle Connor goes from -here- to ^here^ over the course of time.’ So it’s great to have a young player on your team that has the capacity to continue to grow.”
The Jets Have Had Contract Talks with Dillon, DeMelo
Cheveldayoff stated that there have been “ongoing discussions” with pending unrestricted free agents (UFA’s) Brenden Dillon and Dylan DeMelo. Earlier in the presser, he also stated that those two have been huge factors in their success both on and off the ice this season.
Niederreiter was signed, Scheifele and Hellebuyck were signed, and that leaves the two veteran defenders as the two key UFA’s to sign from this current core. The one thing to consider here is the defensive logjam the Jets have built up over the years, and whether or not re-signing these players would prolong that logjam of NHL-quality blue-liners.
This shows that there has been progress in regards to a potential contract with Dillon, as in the middle of Nov, he confirmed to me in a one-on-one that there had been no contract talks up until that point. Winning solves everything, and it also brings management and agents to the table to negotiate money they rightfully deserve and have absolutely earned so far this season.
Related: Q&A with Jets’ Brenden Dillon: Improving the Penalty Kill
The Winnipeg Jets’ Ultimate Goal is Still Far Away
Every teams goal is to win the Stanley Cup, and as Head coach Rick Bowness says often, if you aren’t the team hoisting the Cup, you’ve got work to do. That sentiment has travelled through the organization, as Cheveldayoff had a similar point of view: “We’ve accomplished nothing yet. They’ve accomplished nothing yet, and they know that. But you certainly put yourself in a good position if you play like that night after night.”
Yes they have set franchise record, and are approaching NHL records in a handful of categories, but Cheveldayoff and Bowness are on the right track with this line of thinking. Think back to as early as last season, when the Jets were flying high atop the Western Conference, and ended up as the second wildcard team and facing the Vegas Golden Knights round one. As Adam Lowry said after morning skate on Thursday, they can’t get complacent with their play, especially with a tough stretch of games coming up.
The next time we can expect Cheveldayoff to speak to the media will be in and around the Trade Deadline, and until then, Jets fans can continue to enjoy their first-place NHL squad, as they are seemingly dominating NHL competition night after night.