No masking this relationship Hellebuyck, Brossoit share bond backstopping Jets By: Mike McIntyre Posted: 4:49 PM CDT Monday, Mar. 18, 2024

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This article was published 18/03/2024 (866 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NEW YORK — There is no stingier duo in the NHL this season than Vezina Trophy favourite Connor Hellebuyck and, arguably, the best backup in the league, Laurent Brossoit.

This potent partnership is a main reason why the Winnipeg Jets (43-19-5) sit atop the Central Division and Western Conference in terms of point percentage with just 15 regular-season games left to play.

The Free Press peeked behind the curtain in recent days, looking at how this competitive partnership has evolved into a close friendship that has allowed both players, along with their teammates, to flourish.

“One of the biggest things with these two guys is they’re rooting for each other,” says Jets assistant coach and former NHL goalie Wade Flaherty. “And the competition is there for the next guy to play that much better. And it’s healthy because they’re cheering for each other.”

That became apparent in a one-on-two interview with Hellebuyck and Brossoit, who aren’t quite at the finishing-each-other’s-sentences stage — but close.

“We’ve got the same foundation, same mindset going into every practice, every game with regards to our structure,” says Hellebuyck.

“We have this relationship where we think the game in a very similar way,” Brossoit quickly chimes in. “And now when we’re bouncing ideas off each other, it’s not this foreign thing.”

It wasn’t always that way, of course. But, as Flaherty tells it, there was almost instant chemistry between Hellebuyck and Brossoit when they met for the first time at a summer goaltending camp in Kelowna in 2017.

“I was there for the week,” Flaherty recalls. “The two were partnered together. You could kind of see the friendship building. They were doing the golf thing in the afternoons. They were doing drills, and the communication (was evident) between the two of them, like ‘How would you do this? How would you do that?’ There was a lot of information going through the two of them.”

Although both were 24 at the time, they were in very different stages of their careers.

Hellebuyck, a Michigan product who was a Jets’ fifth-round pick in 2012, had already established himself as a legitimate No. 1 netminder. Brossoit, a British Columbian who was a sixth-round pick of the Calgary Flames in 2011, had spent the majority of his career in the American Hockey League, playing only a handful of games with the Edmonton Oilers.

“They’re each elite in a few areas of the game. And I think they admire that about each other, and feed off that.”– Ray Petkau

“I wasn’t doing so hot, so I was looking for any help that I could get,” recalls Brossoit.

The common link was each player was represented by Steinbach-area agent Ray Petkau of Alpha Hockey Inc. Petkau and the company’s director of player development, Adam Francilia, were behind the Net360 goaltender development program.

“We were the same age, and we were there at the same time. We only had each other really,” Hellebuyck says, of the bond that was formed on and off the ice.

It would only get stronger after Brossoit signed a one-year, two-way contract with the Jets to be the new backup for the 2018-19 season.

“After spending some time with him in Kelowna, it was a no-brainer. I could see the talent level,” says Flaherty.

And, it turns out, a match made in hockey heaven.

“They’re each elite in a few areas of the game. And I think they admire that about each other, and feed off that,” Petkau says, of having two clients on the NHL team in his own backyard.

“It’s a neat combination of those two goalies, and so much fun to watch. I remind myself not to take that for granted. Hey, I’m still a fan of the game. I love the sport. I’m definitely aware that’s unique.”

The original fit was so good, in fact, that Brossoit re-upped for two more years.

“It’s pretty rare to have two guys the same age. Usually, you have a veteran guy and a young starter, or a reverse of that. I think that’s something we could relate to. And I think it’s made us a little bit more competitive than the average set of goalies,” Brossoit says.

“Not only that we’re kind of the same build, same size, play a similar game. So, we can bounce ideas off each other.”

Hellebuyck continued his climb to the top of the NHL goalie mountain, winning the Vezina following the 2019-20 season, while Brossoit was the perfect complement and proved capable of carrying a heavier workload.

“Their friendship would build over the years,” says Flaherty. “Very easy-going, laid-back personalities. But engaged when they play and when they practise. Very focused… it’s all about the preparation with the two of them off ice. They’re in the gym, they’re doing their special exercises. And what’s neat is they both do very similar preparations.”

Flaherty describes the working relationship as “a bit of a goalie hot stove,” one he takes great pride in being able to oversee.

“At the end of the day, it’s them that go on the ice and stop the puck. I do what I can to get them prepared as best I can, and then they go out and do what they can – and they do it very well,” he says.

The pause button was hit on the partnership in the summer of 2021 when Brossoit, an unrestricted free agent, signed a two-year deal with the Vegas Golden Knights. The logic was there would be a bigger opportunity to play.

“I was sad when he left,” says Hellebuyck.

“At the end of the day, it’s them that go on the ice and stop the puck. I do what I can to get them prepared as best I can, and then they go out and do what they can… and they do it very well.”– Wade Flaherty

They would see each other again last spring in the first round of the playoffs, with Brossoit now the starter for top-seeded Vegas. He’d get the better of Hellebuyck and the Jets in a five-game series victory.

But a serious groin injury in the second round against the Edmonton Oilers ended Brossoit’s year and, it turns out, his time in Sin City. Adin Hill took the reigns, helped guide Vegas to the Stanley Cup, and then signed a two-year contract extension with an annual cap hit of US$4.9 million.

It’s a fool’s game to play ‘What if?’ But there’s a strong possibility that had he not been hurt, Brossoit might have backstopped a remarkably solid Golden Knights squad to the championship and earned a lucrative new contract of his own.

Instead, he was out of a job and looking for work on the open market.

Once again, the Jets came calling. Another “no-brainer,” as Flaherty calls it.

Petkau maintains there were offers from other markets, however, returning to the Manitoba capital and reuniting with Hellebuyck made the most sense.

“It’s been great,” says Hellebuyck. “The internal conversations we have, not just at practices, but coming in after periods and bouncing ideas off each other, talking about goals and mistakes. It’s more constructive. It can really help.

“It really eases my mind. It’s almost like having a goalie coach sitting next to me that plays your game, a similar game. It’s very easy and relaxing on your mind.”

After stopping 30 shots in Sunday’s 6-1 victory in Columbus to open this five-game road trip, Hellebuyck is now at 31-15-3 over 49 starts with a 2.31 goals-against average and .922 save percentage. Both of those marks lead all qualified NHL starters.

Brossoit’s numbers are sensational, albeit in a smaller sample size of 18 starts. He is 12-4-2 with a sizzling 1.99 GAA and .927 SV%. He’s coming off consecutive shutouts (over the Seattle Kraken and Anaheim Ducks) and hasn’t given up a goal in 150 minutes, 40 seconds of action.

It’s safe to say the netminding partners bring out the best in each other.

“Oh definitely. I don’t see it like I’m competing with him. I’m seeing it as, ‘Let’s grow together, let’s get better together,’” says Hellebuyck.

Brossoit praised Hellebuyck, and Flaherty, for the growth in his game.

“It was completely different when I got here. I was more of the athletic, mobile guy,” he says. “I see on a daily basis what you don’t get to appreciate until you’re here every day how (Hellebuyck) does it. Over the years I’ve taken a lot of the pieces that have made him successful and implemented them in my game. He’s got a formula that’s been working, and arguably the most stable goalie in the last decade, and I get to take a lot from that.”

The NHL team that gives up the fewest goals each season is awarded the William M. Jennings Trophy. Right now, the Jets lead the pack at 2.34 per game. The Florida Panthers (2.41) and Los Angeles Kings (2.58) are the closest pursuers.

League rules stipulate a goaltender must make at least 25 appearances to qualify. That means Brossoit would have to get into seven of Winnipeg’s final 15 games.

“It is what it is. At the end of the day, I’m not here saying, ‘Let’s go win the Jennings.’ I’m looking at bigger-picture things. And we’re going to roll accordingly,” says Flaherty.

Translation? There’s another trophy the Jets would love to collect at some point in late June. With Hellebuyck and Brossoit holding down the fort, they’ve certainly got a fighting chance.

Which brings us to the elephant in the room, if you will: The working relationship will almost certainly come to an end very soon.

When Brossoit returned to the Jets on a one-year, US$1.75 million deal last summer, there was some doubt about what was going to happen with Hellebuyck, who was entering the final year of his deal. Would he be traded? Test free agency?

But he inked a seven-year extension (which kicks in next year) that will pay him US$8.5 million annually.

Petkau says the decision to make the long-term commitment was all about trying to win a championship with the team that drafted him, in a city he loves, even if it likely meant leaving money on the table.

“Connor is chasing one thing, and that’s the Stanley Cup,” said Petkau. “The great thing about him is if he can win that Stanley Cup in the next number of years, I know he’s going to want that second one. And a third one. He’s that type of driven individual.”

Unfortunately, for his other Winnipeg client, that means a path to a starting job with the Jets — something Brossoit has now made a compelling argument he’s qualified for — is suddenly blocked.

“It is a bit bittersweet. If I could choose, and if it didn’t mean halting or stalling of my career, I’d prefer to stay here,” says Brossoit.

“I’m very comfortable here, I don’t think we’ll probably go the rest of our career having this good of a relationship (with anyone else), with the age and the similarities that we have. It will be sad to go, if I do, but it’s the nature of the beast.”

Fact is, there should be several teams lining up this summer to make Brossoit an offer he simply can’t refuse, with the kind of money and term given to a guy who will, at the very least, be competing for a platoon role as the top dog.

“I would expect my phone to be ringing on July 1,” says Petkau.

Adds Flaherty: “He’s proving, huge, that he’s capable. And I’m sure there’s a lot of eyes watching him.”

Including those of his current job-share partner and, it appears, biggest fan.

“He should be a starter somewhere,” notes Hellebuyck. “I would be his front-runner saying that he belongs starting in goal.

“It will be sad to see him go, but I’ll send the reference letter.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X: @mikemcintyrewpg