4 Winnipeg Jets backup goalie targets for 2024-25 – Hockey Writers –

The Winnipeg Jets could be in need of a new backup goaltender next season. Laurent Brossoit has excelled behind Connor Hellebuyck in his return to Winnipeg, but will get some starting money as an unrestricted free agent (UFA).

That's all well and good for him, but bad for the Jets, who believe Brossoit was the NHL's best backup and gave the team as good a chance to win as Hellebuyck. Combined, they allowed just 199 goals all season and William M. Won the Jennings Trophy.

Related: Jets 2024 unrestricted free agent preview

Tomas Milich, a 2023 fifth-round pick who had a stellar rookie season with the Manitoba Moose and was instrumental in their second half, needs two more seasons of seasoning in the AHL and is without another netminder in the organization. NHL Radar. As a result, general manager Kevin Cheveldeiff will have to scour the free agent market to find Hellebuyck's backup for 2024-25. Here we take a look at three of his targets.

Pheonix Copley

The Los Angeles Kings' re-signing of the former Jets backup could open the way for Phoenix Copley to come to Winnipeg.

The Kings recently re-signed David Rittich to a one-year contract after spending 24 games this season through 2022-23 with the Jets. Rittich, who began the season with the Ontario Reigns in the AHL, has only had a chance to win a backup role since Copley suffered an ACL injury during practice in December and underwent season-ending surgery. Before the injury, Copley made eight starts, posting a 4-1-2 record, a 3.26 goals-against average, (GAA) .870 save percentage (SV%) and one shutout.

Whether the Kings re-sign 36-year-old Cam Talbot — who has made most of their starts and is also a UFA — or secure someone else as their No. 1 goaltender won't change much for Copley, who now appears to be cost-prohibitive.

Copley is 32 years old and has had an uneventful NHL career. The North Pole, Alaska native's best campaign was 2022-23 with the Kings, where he appeared in 37 games and made 35 starts, going 24-6-3 with a 2.64 GAA, .903 SV% and one shutout.

He spent five years with the Washington Capitals organization before joining the Kings on a one-year deal. By playing two games in 2021-22, he made his first NHL appearance since 2018-19, making 27 appearances and 24 starts. He spent the entire 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons with the AHL's Hershey Bears, winning the Harry “Hap” Holmes Memorial Award (the NHL's equivalent of the Jennings Trophy) along with Zachary Fucale in 2020–21.

The undrafted Copley began his NHL career with the St. Louis Blues, making one light appearance in 2014-15 and 2015-16. In 76 career games and 72 career starts, he has a 44-16-8 record, a 2.83 GAA, an .899 SV% and three shutouts.

Chris Driedger

Chris Driedger is a Manitoban who fell off the radar due to injury. Can a return to his hometown revive his career?

The Winnipegger played two games with the Seattle Kraken this season, going 1-1-0 with a 2.51 GAA and .917 SV% as Joey Dacord stole the starting role and Philipp Grubauer backed him up. Driedger has been unlucky lately, tearing his ACL at the 2022 IIHF World Championship, missing most of the 2022-23 season and spending a short healthy stretch in the AHL with the Coachella Valley Firebirds.

Driedger, 29 and a UFA, was selected by the Kraken in the 2021 expansion draft and signed a three-year deal with them that summer worth an average annual value of $3.5 million. He made 24 starts and 27 appearances for them in his first campaign in 2021-22, going 9-14-1 with a 2.96 GAA and .899 SV% on a poor defensive club, while also dealing with two injuries that caused him to miss time.

In 67 career games and 60 career games between the Ottawa Senators, Florida Panthers and Kraken, the 2012 third-round pick has a 34-21-5 record, 2.45 GAA, .917 SV%, five shutouts and 12.7 goals against. higher than expected.

Kevin Lankinen

Kevin Lankinen may be an outsider in the fold of the Nashville Predators. He could be another goalkeeper who could benefit from a change of scenery.

The 29-year-old Finn made 17 starts and 24 appearances for the Predators this season in his second campaign with the club, going 11-6-0 with a 2.82 GAA, .908 SV% and one shutout. However, despite Juus Saros' loyal number one guy and the organization's high hopes for Yaroslav Askarov, who has done nothing but win in two seasons in the AHL with the Milwaukee Admirals and looks NHL-ready – Lankinen could find himself a good fit. a strange man came out.

Lankinen, a UFA and undrafted goaltender, arrived in North America in 2020-21 after five seasons in the Finnish League to play for the Chicago Blackhawks. Between two seasons with the Blackhawks and two seasons with the Predators, he made 101 starts and 112 appearances, posting a 3.07 GAA, .905 SV% and three shutouts.

Martin Jones

Martin Jones is a veteran who will extend his career by providing backup or tandem services. It's a known and experienced commodity, two attractive qualities when it comes to backups.

The 34-year-old spent this season with the Toronto Maple Leafs, posting an 11-8-1 record, a 2.87 GAA, a .902 SV% and two shutouts. However, it is impossible for him to return. The Maple Leafs were Jones' third team in the last three seasons, as he played with the Kraken in 2022-23 and the Philadelphia Flyers in 2021-22.

Jones, a UFA and undrafted goaltender, is best known for his six seasons with the San Jose Sharks, where he made 325 starts and led them to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2015-16. He also won the Stanley Cup in his rookie season with the Kings, the first team of his NHL career. In 466 career games and 488 starts across five teams, he has a 236-171-36 record, a 2.72 GAA, a .905 SV% and 30 shutouts. He was an NHL All-Star in 2017 and has appeared in 60 career playoff games, posting a 32-27 record, 2.36 GAA, .917 SV% and six shutouts.