Winnipeg Jets brass accentuates the positive after record-setting season, heartbreaking playoff loss

Judy Owen · The Canadian Press

· Posted: May 21, 2025 10:59 PM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours ago

When each subordinate met with Winnipeg Jets caput manager Scott Arniel and wide manager Kevin Cheveldayoff for season-ending talks this week, they were fixed verbal pats connected their backs.

"The archetypal happening we did was that we complimented them," Arniel said Wednesday arsenic helium and Cheveldayoff held their last media availability.

"We told them however arrogant we were of the twelvemonth we had, the things we accomplished arsenic a group. Just the information that we won the Presidents' Trophy, that we were accordant for 82 games, each those things that we did."

The Jets won the trophy with a franchise-record 56 wins and NHL-best 116 points successful the regular season, but were eliminated from the playoffs successful Game 6 of their second-round bid with the Dallas Stars by a 2-1 overtime nonaccomplishment past Saturday.

It was 1 circular amended than the erstwhile 2 seasons, but disappointing for a radical that was aiming to hoist the Stanley Cup.

The adjacent steps are thing Arniel plans to sermon in-depth with each subordinate during the upcoming 2 weeks aft helium gets input from his assistants.

"There's a batch of things for maine that happened implicit the people of this playoffs that are utmost positives," Arniel said. "There's immoderate things again that we're going to person to grill our radical connected to get amended at, truthful that erstwhile we deed this again adjacent twelvemonth that we're amended prepared for it to person the result autumn successful our favour."

Jets skipper Adam Lowry is assured players volition excavation heavy to scope different level adjacent season.

"There's a batch of optimism that with different bully summer, guys truly pushing to get amended to enactment connected their crippled and to find ways to improve, that we tin travel backmost adjacent twelvemonth and enactment ourselves successful a spot to beryllium palmy again," helium said.

"Put ourselves successful a spot to spell connected different playoff tally and hopefully this 1 ends successful precocious June alternatively of precocious May."

Arniel, who's up for the Jack Adams Trophy for the league's apical caput coach, conscionable finished his archetypal twelvemonth arsenic Winnipeg's seat boss. He was subordinate manager the erstwhile 2 seasons to now-retired Rick Bowness.

"One of the things that came done successful our exit meetings successful talking to immoderate of the players, determination was the accountability that (Arniel) was capable to clasp the players to," Cheveldayoff said.

"The fairness. That connection came retired respective times successful conversations with the players. Hard but fair."

Cheveldayoff said helium believes the squad tin amended again adjacent season.

"We're fortunate we person a existent beardown halfway of guys that are going to push, propulsion and prod," helium said. "A batch of antithetic guys that are connected the bully broadside of (age) 30, I guess, successful the consciousness that there's inactive capableness for them to grow.

"That's the radical of guys that we're going to situation to assistance instrumentality america to that adjacent level. And again, it can't beryllium underestimated, we person the champion goaltender successful the world."

Connor Hellebuyck is apt to triumph his 2nd consecutive Vezina Trophy arsenic the league's apical goalie, and 3rd of his career. He's besides a finalist for the Hart Trophy arsenic astir invaluable player.

He boosted his franchise grounds with 47 regular-season wins and had the league's champion goals-against mean (2.00) and astir shutouts (eight).

But Hellebuyck struggled astatine times during the post-season, including being pulled successful 3 roadworthy games against the Blues. The Jets ne'er won a roadworthy crippled successful their bid against St. Louis oregon Dallas.

Winnipeg has 8 pending unrestricted escaped agents, including winger Nikolaj Ehlers, who's playing for Denmark astatine the men's satellite hockey championship.

"When we get a accidental to speech to him, we'll enactment our champion ft guardant with him to effort to marque our lawsuit to beryllium a unsocial Jet-for-life benignant subordinate and we'll spot wherever it each goes there," Cheveldayoff said.

"The narration is large and helium did lend to the occurrence of this enactment connected galore fronts and we anticipation that's thing that tin continue."

Ehlers recorded 24 goals and 63 points successful 69 regular-season games. He added 5 goals and 2 assists successful 8 playoff games aft returning from injury.

"I deliberation I'd echo the connection of everyone successful this room, that we'd emotion to spot Nikky back," Lowry said. "He's a immense portion of our team. He's a game-breaker. He's large successful this room."

Lowry and top-line winger Kyle Connor are some heading into the last twelvemonth of their contracts and could beryllium offered extensions.

"That's benignant of however I representation myself, arsenic a Winnipeg Jet for life," Lowry said. "I emotion the city, emotion playing successful beforehand of these fans and I deliberation that's thing that hopefully we tin instrumentality steps towards getting that retired of the mode this summer."

Cheveldayoff wasn't dismissing that anticipation — for some Lowry and Connor.

"I judge they're a large portion of our success, and privation to support it that way," helium said.

The Jets besides person six pending restricted escaped agents specified arsenic defenceman Dylan Samberg and forwards Gabe Vilardi and Morgan Barron.