Chevy in no rush to move McGroarty, eyes inking Ehlers

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This article was published 28/06/2024 (466 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

LAS VEGAS — There will come a time when Kevin Cheveldayoff might open up about what has transpired with top forward prospect Rutger McGroarty.

But the runup to the first round of the 2024 NHL Draft apparently wasn’t it.

As the general manager of the Winnipeg Jets met with members of the media for the first time since Scott Arniel was hired as head coach, Cheveldayoff wasn’t about to shed much light on the situation.

Asked directly what has changed between the organization and McGroarty, Cheveldayoff chose to deflect the question rather than confirm or deny any of the speculation surrounding the University of Michigan Wolverines winger.

“So the Rutger situation here, right now, for me I think there’s a time and a place where I’ll comment on something,” said Cheveldayoff. “Rutger’s a prospect within our organization and that’s where it’s at right now.”

That’s also where it was at when the 32nd overall pick was made on Friday night at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

Despite the interest from multiple teams, nothing transpired involving the Jets moving back into the first round on Friday.

That’s not to say a deal couldn’t be on the horizon on Saturday, where rounds two through seven will be held, or somewhere down the road.

What it means in the interim is that the Jets either weren’t interested in the offers that were made or they’re hoping to focus a package more on a player that could help them right now rather than several years down the road.

The Jets retain the rights to McGroarty for two more years, so they’re not going to rush to make a decision on his future.

As of now, the Jets hold the fifth pick of the second round (37th overall), along with one in the fourth round (123), one in the fifth round (155), one in the sixth round (187) and a final selection in the seventh round (219).

Among the players left on the board who might still be available once the Jets are on the clock in Round 2 are Brandon Wheat Kings defenceman Charlie Elick, Everett Silvertips centre Julius Miettinen, Ottawa 67s blue-liner Henry Mews, Czechia D-man Dominik Badinka, Prince Albert Raiders forward Ryder Ritchie and Medicine Hat Tigers winger Andrew Basha.

There had been some chatter that the Jets were trying to make a trade to move back into the first round, but that didn’t occur — likely because of what the asking prices were.

“It’s always high at this point in time. From a team perspective and from a scouting perspective, this is where you restock the cupboards,” said Cheveldayoff. “It’s interesting, the ebbs and flows of the value of a draft pick. At the draft here, you can’t get one to save your life, but at the trade deadline, everyone just says, ‘Yeah, yeah. Give them this one, give them that one.’

“This is where you sit and feel it. You have the passion to want to put your team, do something at the deadline, help them move forward. Usually it’s picks. Then you’re sitting here today. It’s a lonely Maytag repairman type feeling.”

Ultimately the Jets chose to stand pat and take their chances at 37th overall — at least so far.

“I can only speak for when we talk should we move up or should we move down. If you get pockets of players that you feel are very, very close, then maybe you have that ability to say, ‘You know what? We can risk moving X amount of spots one way or another.’ It is a little unique though that you see a lot of them before the draft,” said Cheveldayoff. “Usually, you see those things on the floor when you see your list and how it’s unfolding or not unfolding. So that’s a little bit unique here. We saw one, gosh it was probably a month ago when Chicago made that first one.”

The Jets felt comfortable picking early in the second round partly because there was a wide range of opinions on players ranked between 15th and 50th, which means many final draft lists for teams are substantially different.

“It really does seem like a real spread out year after maybe even a couple of picks. Usually I think you get a lot of general consensus after the top half or something like that of the first round,” said Cheveldayoff. “I do think, talking to the scouts, it’s their day, they’re the ones who put the list together and talk about the players and have passion for those players. But they do seem to think that a player you have on a certain level on your list may be very different on other lists.”

Cheveldayoff also poured some cold water on the trade rumours involving Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers, who is about to enter the final year of his contract before he’s eligible to become an unrestricted free agent.

“So, not dissimilar to standing here last year, I think when we had Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele,” said Cheveldayoff, referring to a pair of franchise cornerstones who dealt with plenty of buzz surrounding them and their next destination before signing matching seven-year extensions last October. “Nikolaj Ehlers is a big part of our team.”

There was plenty of surprise in the early stages of the first round, including a touching moment involving third overall selection Beckett Sennecke and his parents after the Oshawa Generals winger was selected by the Anaheim Ducks.

Ranked significantly lower by most analysts and observers, Sennecke was caught with a look of disbelief on his face and voiced his genuine surprise with a quick use of profanity sprinkled in as a camera captured the moment.

The Utah Hockey Club also made a splash as they selected Kelowna Rockets forward Tij Iginla with the sixth overall pick.

The son of Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla will carry the same distinction for Utah that Scheifele did when he became the first choice of the 2.0 version of the Jets back in 2011.

ken.wiebe@freepress.mb.ca

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