The Winnipeg Jets’ season end was abrupt, and introduced a wealth of questions a lot earlier than they anticipated. With eyes shifting to the offseason activities, the Jets’ current unrestricted free agents take center stage. Several key players are reaching the end of their deals and many are wondering what their futures could look like. This article series will beg the question: Will they remain in Winnipeg, or are they set to move on?
Today’s free agent focus is Jets’ defenseman Brenden Dillon as he appears set to become an unrestricted free agent. Dillon has expressed his love for the city of Winnipeg in the past and would clearly be open to an extension, but now that seems to be up in the air.
After a successful contract season, the buzz around Dillon has increased, leaving fans to wonder if they can expect the tough defenseman to return next season or if they should prepare to move on.
Great Work in the Top 4
Dillon has been a mainstay in the Jets’ defensive top four over the past three seasons, and 2023-24 was no different. Effectively stapled to Neal Pionk on the second pairing, Dillon averaged nearly 19 minutes of ice time per game and found individual success in his role.
Related: Jets 2024 Unrestricted Free Agent Overview
Having never been a commanding offensive presence, getting additional scoring from Dillon was a huge plus for the Jets’ back end. After scoring eight goals in the regular season and adding one more in the playoffs, his nine total goals this season represents a new NHL career high for him. In fact, it was the most he found the back of the net since his time in junior with the Seattle Thunderbirds in the Western Hockey League.
Now, this isn’t to say Dillon has completely changed his game to flex more of an offensive muscle, but what it did show was that he had more of a willingness to get involved with both shot choice and offensive aggressiveness. Combining that with an already solid, physical defensive game, the Jets got a great deal out of the big defender this season.
A Commanding Presence
Size and physicality are keys to Dillon’s game, and for the second consecutive season, he led the team in hits with a career-high 241. That’s just who he is, and it’s an aspect of his game fans have come to love. He doesn’t make it easy on the opposing team and that’s something he does very well.
This is also in addition to him often being one of the first to answer the bell when either being challenged to a fight or protecting his teammates. Dillon was tied with Adam Lowry this season, compiling seven fighting majors.
One of the things now-retired head coach Rick Bowness wanted to instill was a culture of “you go for one of us, you’ll get all of us” mentality, and Dillon was one of the keys to establishing that on the ice. The fact that he was often the first to jump in after a bad hit was a true representation of that mentality, and he along with several other players clearly bought into that identity.
On His Way Out?
It was reported on May 15 that the Dillon camp had not heard from the Jets regarding extension talks, which seems to signal that the likelihood of him reaching free agency is at an all-time high. This is combined with the fact that entering the season, he also hadn’t heard anything in terms of offers. That being said, with the team still in the process of finding a new head coach that will define their future, free-agent negotiations are likely the second priority.
Clearly, the Jets value Dillon as both a player and a person, which would certainly make this difficult for both player and team if they were to part this offseason. That being said, this might be the time for that separation to happen.
With the physical style of Dillon being so taxing on the body, a player who has played that way for so long reaching his mid-thirties is always taking that additional risk of injury. He’ll be turning 34 next season, and with younger defenders ready to take steps in the lineup, it might be the time to give those guys the additional minutes.
This is also doing somewhat of a service to the player as well, as Dillon likely would want a few years of term that would obviously take him onto the other side of 35 years old. This would also carry the likelihood of him dropping into more reduced minutes, which is something all players would probably see as somewhat of a negative.
If Dillon wants to remain a top-four player for the next few seasons, it appears likely that it might be the end of his time as a Jet. This isn’t to say that the best thing for the Jets to do is to move on, because they will undoubtedly miss his toughness and team-first attitude, but it’s hard to see both sides getting what they want out of a potential deal here.
However, with Dylan Samberg clearly primed to move into Dillon’s spot on that second pairing, the situation seems to be headed to an end. It’s often how these sorts of deals end, with veterans coming to terms with moving on in favor of the young players who have been waiting in the wings.
If this is in fact the end of his time in Winnipeg, he has clearly made his mark. Lovingly known as “Dilly” by both fans and teammates alike, he will have played a huge part in helping to establish a culture in what was a team-defining few seasons.
