The Connor Hellebuyck saga could be about to end in Winnipeg.
According to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun, the Winnipeg Jets and New Jersey Devils are closing in on a Hellebuyck trade with some important details still needed to be worked out.
Earlier, TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reported trade talks were escalating and a deal could take place as soon as Friday.
LeBrun has previously listed the Carolina Hurricanes, Buffalo Sabres and Utah Mammoth as other possible suitors.
A trade would months of speculation about the netminder’s future after he initially expressed frustrations with the team’s direction in April and formally requested a trade over the summer. That turned into an unpaid suspension when Hellebuyck did not report to training camp last month.
It could also come on the same day Hellebuyck’s suspension was set to end. It was revealed last week that the netminder informed the Jets he planned to report ahead of their opening game and was then given a three-week disciplinary suspension for skipping camp.
The development also arrives after it was speculated Thursday that things could go on hold until after the weekend to allow the Jets to keep their focus on Saturday’s Heritage Classic against the Montreal Canadiens.
Dreger had reported that the Jets kept their focus on trading Hellebuyck rather than have him return to the team. Hellebuyck forfeited just under $40,000 a day while he was suspended, surrendering just under $930,000 of his yearly $7.5 million salary this season.
The Jets have opened the season with a 5-4-1 record with Stuart Skinner going 3-1-3 as the team’s new starter after signing a two-year contract in the off-season. Skinner has a .912 save percentage and a 2.67 goals-against average while sitting ahead of September waiver-claim Clay Stevenson (1-2-0 this season) on the depth chart.
The 33-year-old Hellebuyck went 23-23-11 with the Jets last season with a 2.86 goals-against average and an .895 save percentage. Winnipeg took a step backward, going from Presidents’ Trophy winners the year before in 2024-25 to missing the playoffs.
He went public with his trade request in August in hopes of spurring a move. The Sabres and Jets discussed a Hellebuyck trade before the first round of the draft in June, but were unable to reach a deal and the off-season went quiet from there.
“Winnipeg has been my home for my entire NHL career, and I will always be grateful for my time there,” a statement released by his agent read. “I have never forgotten June 23, 2012. That’s the day Winnipeg took a chance on a goalie playing in Odessa, TX. I gave everything I had from that moment to prove that the Jets made the right decision.
“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.
“I appreciate everything Winnipeg Jets fans have meant to me throughout my career and hope a resolution can be reached soon.”
The 6-foot-4 netminder is in the third season of a seven-year, $59.5 million contract that carries an annual cap hit of $8.5 million. He holds a full no-move clause as part of the contract through next July, when it will switch to a 10-team approved trade list.
Hellebuyck enjoyed some glory this past season as he backstopped the United States to their first Olympic gold medal in men’s hockey since 1980, going 5-0 with a 1.18 GAA and .956 save percentage. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom following his 41-save performance in the gold-medal win overtime win against Canada.
“For me, it’s winning a Stanley Cup – that’s my goal, and that’s all I have left, and that’s what I want on my resumé,” Hellebuyck said after the season ended in April. “I don’t play this game for the money, I don’t play it for the fame. I do it for my own personal fun and, you know, part of that is winning a Cup. So for me, I’m just looking at how can I get that? How can I get there?”
Hellebuyck is just a year removed from being the runaway winner of the Hart Trophy and Vezina Trophy in 2024-25, putting up a 47-12-3 record with a 2.00 GAA and .925 save percentage.
Drafted 130th overall by the Jets in the 2012 draft, Hellebuyck has a career 345-208-55 record with a 2.58 GAA and .916 save percentage.