Short-term pain for long-term gain? Jets’ draft and development model should get a much-needed infusion of talent DUMP & CHASE
By: Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe Posted: 5:37 PM CDT Friday, Mar. 13, 2026

A weekly lap around the NHL by Free Press hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe

With the Winnipeg Jets ushering in a bit of a youth movement down the stretch, there’s bound to be a renewed focus on the “draft and development” model that is supposed to be their bread-and-butter.

No question it has paid dividends, particularly from the earlier stages of the 2.0 era. The first two picks way back in 2011 — Mark Scheifele and Adam Lowry — were home runs who have become foundational pieces for the franchise.

The likes of Connor Hellebuyck, Josh Morrissey and Kyle Connor soon followed and remain to this day, while Jacob Trouba, Andrew Copp, Nikolaj Ehlers, Patrik Laine and Mason Appleton all became key contributors before moving on.

The pipeline has taken a bit of a hit over the past decade, with only a couple of players graduating to full-time NHL status since Laine and (eventually) Logan Stanley did so from the class of 2016.

Dylan Samberg (2nd round, 2017) and Cole Perfetti (1st round, 2020) are the only two who would fit that bill.

Elias Salomonsson (2nd round, 2022) and Brad Lambert (1st round, 2022) have recently been called up from the Manitoba Moose and aspire to get there one day. The jury is still out on several recent picks who are either in the AHL or still playing in junior, college or Europe.

Is this an issue with drafting? Developing? Both? Or just an unfortunate run of bad luck in the annual NHL lottery?

With the rebuilding New York Rangers in town Thursday night, we couldn’t help but notice that 20-year-old rookie forward Gabe Perreault scored the game-winning goal (along with an earlier assist) to move him up to a solid 17 points (7G, 10A) in his first 32 NHL games.

Perreault was selected 23rd overall in 2023, which was considered a bit of a fall for the standout with the U.S. National Development Team who went on to play two seasons at Boston College and put up 108 points (35G, 73A) in 73 collegiate games before turning pro last year.

That’s notable for Jets fans, since he was still on the board when general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff went to the podium to select Colby Barlow with the 18th pick.

It’s still too early to render a verdict on Barlow, but the graduate of the Oshawa Generals who won the OHL scholastic player of the year that season has spent all 46 games of his first pro year with the Manitoba Moose, where he has eight points (3G, 5A).

If you look at the top 19 picks from 2023, three have yet to play in the NHL. Two of them are in the Jets organization, along with Montreal’s David Reinbacher (fifth overall, currently with Laval of the AHL).

Joining Barlow is Manitoba Moose teammate Brayden Yager, the 14th overall pick by Pittsburgh who was obtained by the Jets in a trade for 2022 first-rounder Rutger McGroarty (who is up to 28 NHL games on his resume). Yager has 22 points (8G, 14A) in 53 AHL games this year.

It says here the Jets — who will never be a haven for free agent signings — desperately need one, or both, of Barlow and Yager to eventually pan out, especially when you see what the likes of multiple picks around them are already doing in the big leagues.

The Jets certainly hope Salomonsson and Lambert can make up for the loss of McGroarty from the 2022 draft. And last week’s trade of Stanley and Luke Schenn to the Buffalo Sabres brought back 2021 first-rounder Isak Rosen (14th-overall), who scored his first goal with the Jets in Thursday’s loss to the Rangers.

Winnipeg’s own first-rounder from that year, Chaz Lucius, unfortunately had to retire from hockey after being diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, which is a group of inherited disorders that affects connective tissues such as skin, joints and blood vessel walls.

As for 2024 and 2025, there’s hope that promising young skaters such as Kieron Walton and Kevin He (who are currently tearing up the OHL) and Swedish defencemen Alfons Freij and Sascha Boumedienne, who recently helped lead their country to World Junior gold, have bright NHL futures.

As for 2026, the Jets find themselves staring at a potential early first-round pick. As of Friday, three teams — the Vancouver Canucks, Calgary Flames and Chicago Blackhawks — have fewer points.

There is plenty of high-end talent available this summer, including forwards Gavin McKenna, Ivar Stenberg and Caleb Malhotra and defencemen Keaton Verhoeff, Chase Reid, Alberts Smits and Carson Carels, who is from Cypress River.

A little more short-term pain this season could ultimately lead to some much-needed long-term gain for the Jets.

AROUND THE GLASS:

HEADS UP: How do you stop Nathan MacKinnon?

That’s a question teams in the league been wrestling with for years, and the Jets will have their hands full on Saturday afternoon as MacKinnon and his Colorado Avalanche teammates pay a visit to Canada Life Centre.

It’s the first of three meetings in the next nine games between the Central Division rivals.

MacKinnon made headlines earlier this week when he plowed into Edmonton Oilers netminder Connor Ingram, drawing a five-minute interference major and a game misconduct. Replays show Oilers defenceman Darnell Nurse making contact with MacKinnon and steering him into Ingram, who was cut on the play and knocked out of the game.

The penalty was later rescinded by the NHL, but debate around the league continues including inside Winnipeg’s dressing room.

“I don’t know what you can do as it happens pretty fast,” said Jets defenceman Dylan DeMelo.

“I think (Nurse) is just trying to get back and stop MacKinnon, MacKinnon is going 100 miles an hour and he is not really in full control of his body but I do not think he is trying to hurt Ingram. It was a tough situation, and I don’t think anybody is trying to do anything malicious there.

“It is pretty rare to see a goalie get bloodied like that. It was a scary incident and unfortunate for everybody involved as Colorado lost a pretty darn good player for that game.”

BUFFALO BOYS: It took a few days to get their work visas in order, but former Jets’ Tanner Pearson, Stanley and Schenn were all in the lineup on Thursday night as the Buffalo Sabres fell 2-1 to the Washington Capitals.

Prior to puck drop, Schenn joked with Buffalo media that this is now the fourth different team he’s played on with Pearson, with Los Angeles, Vancouver and Winnipeg being the others.

He also noted how he was greeted by one of his new teammates, Josh Doan — who happens to be the son of one of his former teammates, Shane Doan.

“That’s how you know you’ve been around for a while,” said Schenn.

Just like they often were on the Jets, Stanley and Schenn were paired together for the Sabres. They got burned on the first goal of the game and both went minus-one. As for Pearson, he didn’t draw an assist but was on the ice for Buffalo’s lone tally, scored by another trade deadline addition in Sam Carrick.

As noted above, Rosen scored his first goal with the Jets on Thursday, and it was assisted by defenceman Jacob Bryson, who also came over in the trade from the Sabres (along a second and fourth-round draft pick) in exchange for Stanley and Schenn. Buffalo sent a seventh-rounder to Winnipeg for Pearson.

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