On the day that his suspension with the Winnipeg Jets was set to expire, we finally had our move. Connor Hellebuyck got what he wanted. He's on a new team, and that team, to my surprise, is the New Jersey Devils. The day began with talks of escalation and the saga concluded with a resolution for both teams, especially as the Jets prepare to play in the Heritage Classic this weekend.
To get the deal done, the Devils traded forwards Dawson Mercer and Nick Bjugstad, goalie Nico Daws, 2026 12th overall pick Alexander Command, a 2029 2nd round pick, and a 2027 7th round pick, netting the Jets a significant haul for the star netminder, who is yet to play this season after news of his wanting out of Winnipeg was first reported.
Since that moment, it has been nonstop speculation, from this site included. We've been talking about the prospect of this since the draft, when things seemed to be very active. The Canes made an offer, as did the Buffalo Sabres. However, the Jets weren't moved by anything they were offering and allowed this to move well into training camp and the new season. Ultimately, Carolina wasn't the spot.
For Winnipeg, it's the end of a major distraction. As great as Hellebuyck has been historically, winning multiple Vezina Trophies, a Hart Trophy, and an Olympic goal medal, this was a very public story that took away from what was happening on the ice. Head Coach Scott Arniel made a pretty pointed statement after a loss last weekend about the entire ordeal.
Hellebuyck joining the Metropolitan Division is not something that makes me particularly happy, especially now that the 84-game schedule means playing each team four times. That being said, Hellebuyck doesn't have great numbers against the Canes. In ten appearances, he's 4-5-0 with a 3.71 GAA and a .887 save percentage. He hasn't faced them since March 2025, a 3-2 Carolina win.
The Canes don't face the Devils for the first time this season until February 23 in Raleigh. All four meetings come over the Hurricanes' final 23 games. As of Friday, when the trade was finalized, the Devils are fourth in the division at 6-4-0. They are 16th in goals allowed per game and 24th on the penalty kill, so this should be a massive boost for them.
Ultimately, I don't think missing out on Hellebuyck is as massive a deal for the Canes as it might seem, especially knowing the price New Jersey paid. It would've been great to sure up what is considered the "weakest" part of the team, but I also think it shows that the front office has significant trust in Brandon Bussi and Pyotr Kochetkov to leads this group to another Stanley Cup.
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