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It's been another phenomenal regular-season for the Winnipeg Jets, who made history by winning 15 times in 16 tries to begin the 2024-25 National Hockey League campaign. Now a fantastic 25-10-1 coming out of the holiday break, Scott Arniel's club is looking to one-up last year, when the team won 52 regular-season contests for just the second time in franchise history.
Although the success between games 1-82 is obviously important, the Jets are all but a lock to advance to the Stanley Cup Playoffs next spring. What this organization is really looking for is postseason success, which has been hard to come by in Manitoba. Winnipeg has been ousted in the first round in each of the last two years, and hasn't made a deep run since marching all the way to the Western Conference Final in 2017-18.
In 2024-25, the Jets are certainly looking poised to at least enter the playoffs with home-ice advantage in Round 1 — as they did last season. The top line of Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Gabriel Vilardi has been as good as any trio in the NHL, while Connor Hellebuyck is putting together another Vezina Trophy-caliber campaign between the pipes.
Along with continued excellent play from Josh Morrissey on the back end, the Jets have star power at every position. And in the quest to finally have some sustained success in the postseason, it's likely that general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff will look to make the roster even better ahead of the March 7 NHL Trade Deadline.
Jets looking to get better ahead of trade deadline
The Jets were one of the busier teams ahead of the deadline last season, with multiple pieces being brought in to try to help this team win. Sean Monahan was acquired from the Montreal Canadiens in early February, while Tyler Toffoli was added from the New Jersey Devils a month later.
Unfortunately for Winnipeg faithful, neither scorer was able to help this team get over the hump despite their individual regular-season success. The Jets were beaten in five games by the Colorado Avalanche in the first-round, again being sent home earlier than anyone in the organization would have liked.
This time around, it will probably be a similar story. Cheveldayoff has just over $2.5 million in cap space to work with, and he also has a couple of pending UFAs that could be on the move. Each of Alex Iafallo, Mason Appleton, Vladislav Namestnikov and Neal Pionk will either need to be re-signed, traded, or allowed to walk for nothing when their respective contracts expire. The way the season is going, at least a couple of then should be getting a new contract.
But the most important pending free agent on this roster, and not by a little, is lifetime Jet Nikolaj Ehlers.
Nikolaj Ehlers could leave for nothing if he isn't traded
Ehlers has been one of the best point producers per minute on the Jets' roster over his nearly 10-year career in Manitoba — and that's been the case again in 2024-25. He's averaging under 16 minutes of ice time per game, and is playing at a point-per-game pace with 10 goals and 27 points in 27 games.
The closest the speedy Danish forward ever got to finishing at a point-per-game was in 2020-21, when he managed 46 points in 47 tilts. Ehlers is pacing towards a career-best season and is right at the top of the club in terms of points per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play.
Cheveldayoff has a huge decision to make on Ehlers, who is on an expiring contract and could decide to walk for nothing instead of re-signing in Manitoba over the summer. It's been widely speculated throughout the last year or so that Ehlers isn't planning to re-sign, but the success the team is having makes the situation more complicated.
Ehlers helps to provide a key scoring punch on the second line, and he's a valuable forward for what he brings to the table. Despite often playing limited minutes, he's one of the team's most efficient players. He's also been plagued by injuries over the last couple of years, but he managed to play 82 games in 2023-24 — the first time that had happened since 2017-18.
Although the breakup will be difficult, it's time for Cheveldayoff to move on from Ehlers — especially if the 28-year-old has already decided not to re-sign.
Considering his postseason futility, Jets should trade Ehlers
There are many in Winnipeg who would argue that Ehlers is a fan favorite who makes the entire team better. He's one of the top producers in the franchise's history, and has been great on a line along with Namestnikov and Cole Perfetti in 2024-25. But what happens if the Jets don't trade Ehlers, get bounced early in the postseason, and watch him walk for nothing in the summer? That would be the worst-case scenario for the franchise.
Although the player has been an important part of the club's success, the main reason Ehlers needs to be traded is due to his postseason futility. The only thing that matters in Winnipeg right now is having consistency in the playoffs, and throughout this career, Ehlers has just not been a playoff performer. He has chipped in just 14 playoff points in 37 games.
Multiple hockey insiders believe that Ehlers' time could be coming to an end, including The Athletic's Murat Ates.
“It’s also true that Ehlers’ playoff resume will haunt him until he overcomes it. Nothing is promised on that front, and it’s looking less and less likely that he’ll get the opportunity to improve upon that resume in Winnipeg,” wrote Ates before the season started. “I believe that Ehlers will be shopped ahead of the NHL Draft.”
Former player and Sportsnet insider Nick Kypreos included Ehlers on his first trade board of the season.
“For many years Ehlers has been one of the best point producers per minute on the Jets and that's true again in 2024-25 — averaging 15:33 of ice time per game and scoring more than a point per game, Ehlers is pacing towards a career-best season and leads the Jets in points per 60 minutes of 5-on-5 play,” wrote Kypreos recently.
“Now Winnipeg may be facing a decision on Ehlers, who is on an expiring contract and could decide to seek greater opportunity elsewhere when it expires. Will the team feel itself enough of a contender to carry on with him as its own-rental, will they be able to find a trade for him that helps both now and in the future, or is there any path to an extension?”
Although Ehlers has had a great season — and a terrific regular-season career in Winnipeg — the front office cannot afford to let him walk for nothing. There's enough scoring on this roster already in 2024-25. It's time for the club to prioritize the blue line ahead of the 2025 postseason and move Ehlers for a top-four defenseman ahead of March 7.
