The Winnipeg Jets have won eleven straight games. They have the best record in the NHL, the second-most goals, the fewest goals against, the best power play and the best goaltender. Multiple Jets will receive consideration for end-of-season awards.
And you’ve been trying to make them even better.
We asked you to submit Jets trades, and you put together suggestions in this behemoth thread. You fixed the blue line. You upgraded the forward group. Sometimes you did both in a single trade. You put a lot of focus on legitimate Jets targets, including Rasmus Ristolainen, Jamie Oleksiak, Scott Laughton and more, while also taking massive swings for stars like Elias Pettersson.
But were your trade proposals fair?
We took the most popular ones to a panel of NHL sources — the kind of people who make roster decisions and negotiate contracts.
When it comes to your top Jets trades, who says no?
Rasmus Ristolainen — submitted by Dominik R.
Winnipeg gets: Rasmus Ristolainen and Scott Laughton
Philadelphia gets: Ville Heinola, Nikita Chibrikov, second-round pick
Who says no: Philadelphia
Murat’s take: I see what you’re doing, here. You’ve upgraded the Jets’ defence corps, giving it a big, strong, crease-clearing defenceman in Ristolainen. He’s put together a strong run of results in Philadelphia, leaning on his net-front physicality to take scoring chances away without taking himself out of possession chasing hits. Laughton is a versatile forward — similar to Vladislav Namestnikov or Alex Iafallo in that he can play any role you like — and wears a letter in Philadelphia.
I love what you’re asking for but don’t think you’ve given up enough to get them. The Jets barely use Heinola. They wouldn’t miss a second-round pick in a trade for one of Ristolainen or Laughton. Chibrikov is one of my favourite prospects. He’s tenacious and annoying to play against, while offering a high-end shot that will translate to the NHL if he can get into good spots to use it. If he were faster, he’d be a blue-chip prospect and this deal would look more like fair value to me. As it stands, the Jets address playoff-bound needs this season and next without giving up a first-round pick or taking a player off their NHL or AHL roster. I’m cheating a bit to say that, given Chibrikov is hurt, but I don’t think the Flyers get enough here.
Agent A’s take: “Philly says no. They can get much much more for that package.”
Agent B’s take: “I’m not a huge Ristolainen guy but I think this trade would be really good for the Jets. Philadelphia says no.”
Executive’s take: “Philadelphia says no. With term on both players, they aren’t in an urgent situation. If either are moved the price will be much higher.”
Brock Nelson — submitted by Miles B.
Winnipeg gets: Brock Nelson
New York gets: Brad Lambert, Chaz Lucius, 2026 second-round pick
Who says no: Winnipeg
Murat’s take: I was fascinated by this trade proposal. Brad Lambert’s scoring is down this year — as is everyone’s — on an underwhelming Manitoba Moose team. Chaz Lucius recently played his 25th AHL game this season, which is a new games-played high for him in any league going back to his days with the U.S. National Team Development Program. How would they be viewed by outside sources?
My own trade values are rooted in previous Jets deadline deals. A first-round pick got Sean Monahan. A first-round pick plus what seemed like a quality energy-line prospect in Brendan Lemieux got Kevin Hayes, while a first-round pick and a quality prospect in Erik Foley — before concussion issues — got Paul Stastny. This trade proposal feels similar to those. There’s no first-round pick, but it’s more than balanced by Lambert’s quality as a prospect.
That said, I freeze when I look at Lambert’s and Lucius’ UFA years (2031 and 2030, respectively). You’d have to be really sure Brock Nelson is the guy to give up that much team control on those two prospects. If Lucius rebounds to the point of meaningful Jets contribution, I’d see that as found money — his hockey IQ is NHL quality, but he’s missed so many developmental reps. My range of possibilities for Lambert is wide: I’m guessing he’s a second-line right wing who helps on the power play through most of those years but a best-case scenario would be even better than that.
Do the long-term implications of trading for Brock Nelson make sense? (Charles LeClaire / Imagn Images)
To part with Lambert, I’d need some indication that Nelson would re-sign in Winnipeg beyond this summer. Even then, he’s 33 years old and even if he’s a great fit here and now, I wonder about the long-term implications. Finally: Please call me out for overreaching on a small sample size — I should know better — but I didn’t like Nelson’s game at the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Agent A’s take: “Jets say no. Too much mortgaging of the future here to increase a strength of the team.”
Agent B’s take: “That’s tough. You don’t know what those guys are going to become. Winnipeg says no.”
Executive’s take: “If NYI move Nelson, I think they would be looking for a late first-round pick or equivalent. At minimum. Nelson’s 16-team no-trade list makes that more challenging to accomplish. They would need to like these prospects a lot. I’d say NYI probably says no.”
Jamie Oleksiak and Jared McCann — submitted by Zach T.
Winnipeg gets: Jamie Oleksiak and Jared McCann
Seattle gets: Brad Lambert, 2025 first-round pick, Logan Stanley
Who says no: Nobody?
Murat’s take: If I were Winnipeg, I would hold on to Lambert and the first-round pick but I could see the Jets making this trade.
It reminds me of the Ristolainen and Laughton deal above: You’re looking to patch two pieces of Winnipeg’s foundation with one blockbuster. It’s also fun from the perspective of Oleksiak being the player Winnipeg seems to hope Stanley will become. It’s fitting you’ve included both defencemen in this trade. All that said, McCann is the best player in the deal.
Over the past three years, McCann has scored more points per minutes at five-on-five than any Jets forward outside of Nikolaj Ehlers. Laughton’s scoring rate, by comparison, is closer to that of Adam Lowry and Mason Appleton. Lambert and Winnipeg’s first-round pick both have a lot of value, so there’s substantial risk here. Still, McCann is 28 years old and has two seasons left on his contract after this one — I’m less worried about this trade than the Nelson one above.
Oleksiak is the player I worry about. The 6-foot-7 defenceman has been on the ice for a lot of chances against in recent seasons, despite delivering quality top-four results for a portion of his career. To be clear, I have some optimism that the 32-year-old Oleksiak could find a better version of his game on a Winnipeg team with better defensive structure than Seattle, but there’s no certainty in that. The Kraken have faced a shooting gallery when using Oleksiak in a shutdown role.
Agent A’s take: “I think both teams agree. Maybe add a conditional third-round pick or something to Seattle, too.”
Agent B’s take: “I would do that if I was Winnipeg. McCann has been one of Seattle’s best players. I’m not a huge fan of either defenceman in the deal but I know Stanley struggles. I like Oleksiak more.”
Elias Pettersson — submitted by Damian C.
Winnipeg gets: Elias Pettersson
Vancouver gets: Cole Perfetti, first-round pick, Alex Iafallo, Logan Stanley
Who says no: Vancouver
Murat’s take: I wanted to include one of your biggest swings. Based on your submissions, this left me with Pettersson or Sidney Crosby and I chose to include Pettersson as the more realistic player to be moved.
My hot take is for the Jets to take Pettersson and run. It’s true that Cole Perfetti has outscored him 37-35 this season, but Pettersson was in the middle of interpersonal issues so pronounced that the Canucks traded J.T. Miller away. I’m more inclined to believe Pettersson is capable of the 89 points he put up last season — and maybe even the 102 points he hit two seasons ago — than to think he’s washed up at 26 years old. I’m a believer in Perfetti — and would like to point out his skill development along the boards precedes his “prick” comments — but the odds favour Pettersson as the best player in this trade.
What are the risks? If Pettersson fails to find his game, you’ve traded a cost-controlled top-six forward for a top-six forward who costs $11.6 million a year. That could ruffle feathers on a team where Connor Hellebuyck and Mark Scheifele get paid $8.5 million each. I have no insight on Pettersson’s role in the interpersonal conflicts that played out in Vancouver; Winnipeg would need to know he was bringing his best self to the Jets, regardless of production.
In terms of cost, I don’t expect the Jets’ first-round pick to be particularly high this year or next. I’m not particularly worried about including it, nor do I view Iafallo and Stanley as untouchable for a player of Pettersson’s calibre. Perfetti seems like a thoroughly reasonable cost of doing business if Winnipeg is optimistic about Pettersson at all.
Here’s one NHL executive speaking on the subject in a piece by Harman Dayal: “Pettersson is younger (than Miller), has more of a prime left. He’s not as good of a playoff performer, there’s some (Mitch) Marner in him there. But I can find (playoff performers like) the (Blake) Colemans, the (Ryan) McDonaghs to surround these elite players with and shield him from that.”
I tend to think top-end talent figures itself out more often than not, but I do understand the risk. In the end, I say Vancouver says no because I think the Canucks could get more for Pettersson.
Agent A’s take: “This is a tough one. It’s risky for Winnipeg but I say yes. Focus on the cost control and former 100-point guy.”
Agent B’s take: “I don’t think Pettersson is a playoff player. He’s talented. He has so much skill. When it comes down to a championship, I don’t know if I want that guy as a go-to guy.”
Ryan O’Reilly — submitted by Bruno B.
Winnipeg gets: Ryan O’Reilly
Philadelphia gets: 2025 first-round pick
Who says no: Winnipeg
Murat’s take: You’ve offered what I view as a reasonable price for my favourite player rumoured to be available. I think O’Reilly maintains most of the two-way excellence that made him a Conn Smythe winner in 2019. His game is ideal, in my mind, for playoff hockey because there’s no cheat in it: O’Reilly fights for space in the middle of the ice in front of Juuse Saros and opposing goaltenders alike.
So yeah, I’m in on this. O’Reilly spends most of his time in the offensive zone and I think his point rates would go up if he played between Ehlers and Perfetti (or any combination of Jets forwards). He’s an elite faceoff man, he’s a frustrating player to play against and he tends to have more success on the PK than he’s had in Nashville this season. For $4.5 million for this year and two more after it, I’d offer that first-round pick, and rest assured I’d be keeping my firsts in 2026 and 2027.
Our league source disagreed with me.
Agent A’s take: “Winnipeg says no. I can only see them moving their first-round pick if it’s for a D. I think the Jets have to upgrade their D before the playoffs.”
Agent B’s take: “I don’t know how much O’Reilly has left in the tank. And how many first-round picks are you going to trade away? Winnipeg says no.”
(Top photo of Elias Pettersson handling the puck against the Jets: Bob Frid / Imagn Images)
