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The Winnipeg Jets were the top team in the NHL during the 2024-25 regular season, taking home the President's Trophy. Still, they would fall to the Dallas Stars in the second round of the playoffs. Now, the Jets need to find offensive replacements for some lost key pieces. The best way to do that at this point in the NHL offseason is to make a trade happen.
The Jets' summer has seen them bring back players such as Neal Pionk and Alex Iafallo. They have also added players such as Cole Koepke, Tanner Pearson, Jonathan Toews, and Gustav Nyquist. The team needs to re-sign Gabriel Vilardi, who is still a restricted free agent. The biggest move of the offseason was a loss for the Jets. They watched Nikolaj Ehlers join the Carolina Hurricanes this offseason. Now, they need to find a way to replace his production on the second line.
The Jets still have plenty of cap space to work with. They have over $17 million in space, which is enough to bring in a top-end forward while also re-signing Vilardi. Still, replacing Ehlers is a tall task. The forward scored 24 goals with 39 assists last season. He was also solid on the powerplay, with six goals and 16 assists. They are also getting older in their forward lines. The average age of their current forwards is 29.2 years old. Only Cole Perfetti, Kyle Connor, and Vilardi are under the age of 30 and currently on the top two lines. As the Jets hope to contend well into the future, finding an effective player who still has years to give is a must for general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff.
The Jets strike a deal with the Sabres
Replacing a player who has scored 20 or more goals in eight of the last nine years, while also having 55 or more points in three of the last four, is a big order. Still, with Ehlers now in Carolina, Winnipeg needs to find a way to do this. Toews has not played for the last two years and may not be able to produce at that level at his age. Meanwhile, Nyquist has scored 20 goals and been over 55 points just once in the last five seasons.
The Buffalo Sabres have the perfect answer for the Jets. Alex Tuch would be the perfect fit for the defending Central Division champions. Tuch began his career in the Central Division. The American-born forward was the 18th overall pick by the Minnesota Wild in the 2014 NHL Draft. He would break into the NHL with the Wild in the 2016-17 campaign, playing in just six games.
The forward would then be traded to the Vegas Golden Knights as part of a deal involving the 2017 NHL Expansion Draft. He would get his first taste of the playoffs with the expansion franchise, playing but losing in the Stanley Cup Final in 2018. The Syracuse, New York native would miss a part of 2021-22 due to shoulder surgery in the prior offseason, and while recovering, would be part of the trade to the Sabres in return for Jack Eichel. He has been solid in Buffalo over the last three years. He has scored 36 goals twice, while having 20 or more goals in each of the last three years. Further, Tuch has been at 59 or more points in each of the last three campaigns.
This past year, he scored 36 goals while adding 31 assists, making him a solid replacement for Ehlers on the second line. He has also been a major part of the powerplay and penalty kill, making him even more valuable. In the last three seasons, he has scored 13 powerplay goals while adding 29 assists. This year, the American scored six times shorthanded while also adding three shorthanded assists.
Winnipeg was the best powerplay team in the NHL last year, and Tuch would be able to replace Ehlers to keep that rolling. They were 13th on the penalty kill, and making this trade with the Sabres would also improve that area of their game.
The contract for the former first-round pick is also manageable for the Jets. He is under contract for $4.75 million this upcoming season. He will be a free agent at the end of the year, but Winnipeg has the cap space to extend the 29-year-old while making the trade. The question would be what the Sabres would want back in return. This is a squad in a rebuild, but they are looking for players who can contribute.
Winnipeg would most likely not be willing to trade away players such as Connor, Vilardi, or Perfetti, but they do have other young players that could help the Sabres rebuild quickly. They could easily package some of their other restricted free agents and move them in a deal for Tuch. While trades can be complicated, the Jets should to find a way to make this one happen this summer.
