The orginization actually hopes not.
“We are going to put our greatest foot ahead to attempt to make our case (for him) to be a type of guys who generally is a distinctive Jet-for-life sort of participant and we’ll see the place it goes from there,” Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff mentioned of the pending UFA throughout at his season-end availability final week.
However the Jets don’t have lots working of their favour proper now.
The nearer a pending UFA will get to free company, the harder it’s to sway them off the open market.
Cheveldayoff, a GM of the yr nominee isn’t about to throw a clean cheque on the proficient Danish speedster. Proper or fallacious, as electrifying of a expertise Ehlers is — coming off a career-high 0.91-point-per-game season — he’s all the time been second fiddle to Mark Scheifele and Kyle Connor. In reality, eight gamers logged extra five-on-five minutes per sport than Ehlers did within the playoffs (12:01).
It’s protected to say Cheveldayoff’s pitch received’t embody a greenback determine that’s market worth. AFP Analytics initiatives Ehlers’ subsequent deal to be a six-year contract with an $8.1-million AAV.
That quantity might get even increased, given the bidding struggle that’ll be had for his companies.
Ehlers — who has glorious statistics on a per-minute foundation — has all of the traits of a participant that groups overpay for, beneath the idea that he might thrive in a much bigger function.
Are the Jets actually going to outbid these suitors? Actually not, particularly if that quantity surpasses Connor Hellebuyck and Scheifele’s $8.5-million AAV.
Higher but, even when they have been comfy disrupting the apple cart and paying his market worth — is Ehlers actually going to re-sign with a crew the place he received’t play practically as a lot as he would elsewhere?
All indicators level to Ehlers being good as gone. And whereas precedence No. 1 could also be re-signing him, realistically, Cheveldayoff’s agenda will quickly shift to how he can substitute a four-time, 60-plus-point scorer in his top-six.
Listed below are the objects atop Cheveldayoff’s summer season to-do listing
An Ehlers contingency plan
Whether or not you’re Winnipeg or a free-agent hotbed like Vegas or Florida, changing somebody like Ehlers, in a single day, is hard.
The distinction for Winnipeg, after all, is that no-trade clauses eradicate a number of believable choices they usually’re not touchdown any hot-shot free brokers.
Ideally, just like after they let Brenden Dillon stroll, the Jets discover a solution to fill that gap internally. The very best-case situation is that somebody like Cole Perfetti takes a step ahead, or a prospect – like Nikita Chibrikov or Brad Lambert – turns into a viable top-six ahead.
However for a crew with official Stanley Cup aspirations? You possibly can’t solely financial institution on that.
Don’t be stunned if Cheveldayoff goes out and trades a mid-round decide – or both of his upcoming firsts, if it’s an actual difference-maker – for a middle-six ahead that may present some scoring.
His extension might not appear time urgent – with one yr remaining on his contract – however re-signing Connor is Cheveldayoff’s most necessary summer season goal.
Connor is without doubt one of the finest left wingers on the earth. And the Jets are going to should pay him accordingly.
Since breaking into the league in the course of the 2016-17 season, solely Alex Ovehckin has scored extra objectives than Connor (284) and no one at his place has buried extra game-winning objectives than him (60).
During the last three years, Connor ranks third in each five-on-five playoff factors per 60 minutes (2.70) and five-on-five playoff objectives per 60 minutes (1.43).
With the cap rising, there’s little question Connor goes to be getting a double-digit payday. Here is a have a look at how he compares to others that landed extensions.
Connor’s new deal would kick in in the beginning of the 2026-27 season, when the wage cap is projected to sit down at $104 million. Primarily based off proportion of cap from the gamers above, Connor is in line for an AAV within the ballpark of $11 million.
Samberg, 26, is coming off a profession yr the place he solidified himself as a high-end, top-four defenceman.
The pending RFA is one yr away from free company and there’s little question the Jets are going to attempt to retain him for the long-term. AFP Analytics predicts a five-year, $5.2-million contract for Samberg – though one must imagine the Jets will attempt to lock him all the way down to a seven- or eight-year deal. With the cap rising, we might see some gamers entertain shorter long-term offers – 4 or 5 years – within the hopes of touchdown yet another huge contract down the street. Whether or not or not Samberg is eyeing a mid-range or long-term deal stays to be seen however there’s little question the Jets will probably be aggressive in retaining him for so long as doable. The Jets defence, and the crew as a complete, is a complete different animal with out Samberg within the fold.
Vilardi’s state of affairs is sort of a bit completely different.
The 25-year-old RFA is 2 years away from being a UFA and signing him long-term, ought to he have an interest, might not even be possible. Give it some thought: Connor is about to be paid handsomely, Josh Morrissey is eligible for an extension in a yr from now, plus Scheifele and Hellebuyck are linked long-term — can they actually afford to offer Vilardi the bag, too?
A bridge appears essentially the most believable, for each events.
