There is a sense that the Winnipeg Jets and Connor Hellebuyck could agree to delay the goaltender’s physical to avoid overshadowing the team’s Heritage Classic on Sunday, TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger reported Thursday.
Hellebuyck’s suspension was set to be lifted on Friday, and he will need to complete a physical in order to be restored to the active roster.
As was discussed on Early Trading Thursday morning on TSN, it is not yet clear what the immediate future will look like for Hellebuyck, even with his suspension levied by the team officially lifted.
“The good news if you’re Connor Hellebuyck is this is the last day, Thursday, that he’s under suspension,” TSN Hockey Insider Chris Johnston said. “So, the tap runs dry in terms of the amount of money that he’s giving up.
“The focus from the Jets organization has entirely been on trying to find a trade to bring an end to this Hellebuyck situation. But as we know, that’s not something that has been easy to do so far. These trade discussions have gone back several months, a long period of time, and they’ve yet to find a deal. There’s still a lot of discussion going on behind the scenes about what this means for Hellebuyck. But there is a sense, and I don’t think anyone expects to see him show up in Winnipeg, but we wait here as this suspension ticks down and is soon to be lifted.”
Hellebuyck let Jets management know that he was unhappy with the direction of the team at the end of the 2025-26 campaign, and made a public request for a trade during the offseason a few months later.
Since then, both sides have been at a standstill, with Hellebuyck refusing to report, and the team suspending him for doing so.
The Jets players have worked through the situation as best they can, playing to an encouraging 4-3-2 start without the three-time Vezina Trophy winner in the lineup.
“All I’m going to say is that we want guys that want to be here,” Cole Perfetti said after practice on Monday. “If [Hellebuyck] comes back and shows that he wants to be a part of this, and recommits to this group, then that’s obviously good news.”
“It’s all unknown right now for all of us,” head coach Scott Arniel said after practice Monday, when asked what might happen Friday when the suspension is lifted. “Chevy’s handling that, he’s dealing with that stuff…until [Hellebuyck] shows up here, or whatever may happen, or a trade happens, or whatever that is, it’s hard to talk about.”