You’ve got company, Pavs

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 24/06/2012 (5193 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

PITTSBURGH — The second day of the NHL entry draft is usually a dreary one compared to the buzz of the first.

Not so for the Winnipeg Jets.

GM Kevin Cheveldayoff engineered a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs, acquiring the rights to soon-to-be-unrestricted free agent Jonas Gustavsson for a conditional seventh-round draft pick next June.

The condition is that there is no cost (draft pick) if the Jets don’t sign Gustavsson, likely before next Sunday when he becomes a UFA.

Cheveldayoff said later he won’t be signing three goalies, only two, but now he has some leverage in each case, since starter Ondrej Pavelec is about to become a restricted free agent and last season’s backup, Chris Mason, who has been negotiating with the club, will soon be a UFA.

“We’re going to sign two guys and get that done,” Cheveldayoff said. “But the Pavelec situation is totally separate from this. This is more an opportunity to be able to talk to a UFA person before the July 1 deadline.”

It is that, and it’s unlikely Gustavsson and Mason are the tandem he’s got in mind for next season, but at least the GM has a better goaltending chart, even for a few days, than he did on Friday.

The Jets would appear to have no deal close with any of these goalies, but Cheveldayoff was downplaying his better leverage after Saturday’s trade.

“Not at all. It just gives us an opportunity to talk to someone that is potentially an unrestricted free agent,” he said. “So is Mason. When you get this chance to speak with someone, you can evaluate all your options.

“(Gustavsson) is a big goaltender, very athletic. He’s only had several years over here. Again, he’s an intriguing opportunity to talk to.

“It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re going to get him signed.”

Leafs GM Brian Burke said it was time for Gustavsson, who played 42 games for his team last season and went 17-17-4, to move.

“He saved our butts last year during the season at times. He played some real good hockey for us,” Burke said. “I think it’s time for us as an organization to move on. I think it’s time for him to move on. Winnipeg approached us and said they want to sign him as a backup goaltender.”

Around their deal, which was announced during the draft’s fourth round, the Jets selected five more players, including two goalies.

Their headliner on the day was centre Lukas Sutter of the Saskatoon Blades, chosen by the Jets with the 39th pick overall.

From there, the Jets selected right-winger Scott Kosmachuk from the OHL’s Guelph Storm in the third round (70th), goalie Connor Hellebuyck of Odessa of the NAHL in the fifth (130th), centre Ryan Olsen of the Blades in the sixth (160th) and goalie Jamie Phillips of Toronto of the OJHL in the seventh (190th).

“With Scott Kosmachuk, we’re real excited to add a player that has a good combination of skill but is a great character player as well,” Cheveldayoff said. “We see tremendous upside in his game. He’s a real solid person from a character standpoint, and to get him where we got, we feel very fortunate.”

Kosmachuk, much like the Jets’ first-round pick on Friday, Jacob Trouba, said the draft is only the start of things.

Asked what he would do after the big day, he said: “Keep working hard. Don’t let your head get too big. This is just the beginning. You want to get bigger, stronger, physically … keep working on your game.”

Both goalies picked by the Jets are 19-year-olds headed for NCAA hockey in the fall. And both are 6-foot-4. Hellebuyck is from Commerce, Mich., and is headed for UMass-Lowell, while Phillips is from Chateauguay, Que., and will go to Michigan Tech.

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca