‘Moving on is the best path forward’ Jets’ Hellebuyck trade request marks pivotal moment for the franchise By: Ken Wiebe Posted: 2:26 PM CDT Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026 Last Modified: 4:16 PM CDT Thursday, Aug. 27, 2026 Updates

Connor Hellebuyck has broken his silence in an effort to expedite his departure from the Winnipeg Jets.

In a statement released by agent Ray Petkau on Thursday afternoon, Hellebuyck confirmed he has asked to be moved by the team that chose him in the fifth round of the 2012 NHL draft.

“I have never forgotten June 23, 2012. That’s the day the Winnipeg Jets took a chance on a goalie playing in Odessa, Texas. I gave everything I had from that moment to prove the Jets made the right decision,” Hellebuyck said in the statement.

“Several months ago, I privately requested a trade. I have tried to handle the situation quietly and respectfully, while giving the organization time to explore its options. With training camp approaching, I felt it was important to publicly confirm my request. My position has not changed and I believe moving on is the best path forward for me and my family.”

Hellebuyck also expressed his gratitude to the Jets fan base as he closed out the statement, noting he hopes “a resolution can be reached soon.”

So where does that leave the Jets and Hellebuyck?

The short answer is: in the exact same place they were when Hellebuyck walked out of his exit interview and met with the media back in April.

Hellebuyck clearly had some things to get off his chest and he didn’t hold back, leaving a trail of breadcrumbs about his lack of confidence in the direction of the hockey club.

Although things have clearly escalated since then to the point of a formal request, this is where the situation was heading.

The only thing that’s really changed with Thursday’s statement is that Hellebuyck and his camp are trying to turn up the heat and trying to force the hand of Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff.

“My position has not changed and I believe moving on is the best path forward for me and my family.”

Will it work? That remains to be seen.

If past behaviour is a predictor of future behaviour, the answer is: likely no — at least not in the short term, unless one of the interested teams improves its best offer to date.

“Connor has been open with us about his desire for a change,” Cheveldayoff said in a statement on Thursday.

“He has been an important part of the Winnipeg Jets organization for many years, and we have tremendous respect for what he has accomplished here. While we continue to work through the situation in a thoughtful manner, there is no update at this time.”

Applying public pressure is an understandable strategy for Hellebuyck, but over the course of Cheveldayoff’s previous 15 seasons, there have been a number of Jets players who requested to be traded.

While it’s true most of those were mostly kept private, a similar situation occurred in late September of 2016 during the World Cup of Hockey, when agent Kurt Overhardt released a statement announcing that client Jacob Trouba had asked to be traded and wouldn’t be reporting to training camp.

The main difference was that Trouba was a restricted free agent who needed a new contract and not someone with five more years left on his current deal. Trouba eventually signed a new pact and was traded in the summer — of 2019.

That’s not to suggest the Hellebuyck situation is about to drag on for three more years, though.

Whether Hellebuyck made a public statement or not, the likelihood of finishing out this season as a Jet was already slim.

Several complicating factors remain at play, and that’s why there hasn’t been much movement on this front since a near deal with the Buffalo Sabres fell apart on the Friday of the 2026 NHL draft.

“While we continue to work through the situation in a thoughtful manner, there is no update at this time.”

Hellebuyck holds plenty of leverage by nature of his full no-movement clause, though he’s shown an openness for that not to be an impediment.

There will be some folks who suggest Thursday’s turn of events could weaken the Jets’ bargaining position, yet the flip side to that argument is GMs around the league have known Hellebuyck’s wishes well before Cheveldayoff admitted the Jets were taking calls on the goalie.

The one constant is that the Jets’ high asking price has yet to be met and this public statement isn’t likely to be the impetus for Cheveldayoff deciding to lower that cost of acquisition — even if Hellebuyck would prefer a resolution sooner rather than later.

The only other way Hellebuyck could apply additional pressure would be to withhold his services and not show up for training camp.

That would be both a bold and unconventional move, but it could be the next potential landmine for the Jets to navigate if a new home can’t be found for Hellebuyck before the middle of next month.

The signing of Stuart Skinner to a two-year contract on July 1 was a sign that the Jets were adding more than just a backup or an insurance policy in free agency, but further depth at the position is required if the Hellebuyck era is about to come to an end.

“Winning” a trade that involves a three-time Vezina Trophy winner who also has an Olympic gold medal and a Hart Trophy in his possession is a difficult task for Cheveldayoff.

And losing a franchise pillar won’t be easy for the Jets. This is a significant blow for a team that was already in need of a bounce-back season.

Being able to rely on Hellebuyck as a workhorse in the regular season has been the equivalent of having a security blanket for the Jets. Finding a way to add talent to the roster to help in both the present and future after Hellebuyck’s departure is the only way this deal is going to get done.

No matter what the timeline for that move ends up being, this is clearly a pivotal moment for the franchise.

The stakes are incredibly high and how Cheveldayoff handles trading someone who, in his own words, was going to be a “Jet for life” after signing his seven-year extension in October of 2023 could very well end up being a defining moment for the general manager’s tenure.

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