Via Sportsnet.ca
With the regular season starting for the Winnipeg Jets on Friday October 14, 2022 versus the New York Rangers, here are some predictions that could be worth monitoring throughout the season.
Kyle Connor
Scoring 47 goals and adding 46 assists in the 2021/22 season over 79 games, Kyle Connor has showed he’s capable of being a 50 goal scorer and over a 100 point player potentially.
Bold Prediction: Connor scores more than 55 goals and produces over 110 points.
Brad Lambert
After an up and down showing at the World Juniors redo in August, Brad Lambert showed up to the Jets camp, ready to prove why some scouts had him ranked very high not too long ago.
Lambert who was selected round one 30th overall in the 2022 NHL draft has put himself in a position to be considered a top call up from the Manitoba Moose and perhaps force Winnipeg into making a few decisions on players they didn’t expect to make sooner rather than later.
Bold Prediction: Lambert sign his entry level contract and is one of the first players recalled from the AHL Manitoba Moose, finishing top three in rookie of the year voting.
Blake Wheeler
To Blake Wheeler’s credit, he has went about training camp showing a “team first” mentality and he will do what’s right for the team. After losing the “C” right before training camp opened, this decision could of went in a couple different ways. So far, everything looks to be going smoothly in Winnipeg when it comes to Blake Wheeler and where he stands within the Jets organization.
Bold Prediction: In large part due to the emergence of youngsters Cole Perfetti and Brad Lambert, Wheeler becomes expendable and is moved to a team looking for top-6 forward help. Nashville, New York Rangers, Calgary, Columbus, Carolina, Minnesota are teams to keep an eye on.
Pierre-Luc Dubois
No need to re-ignite the conversation on Pierre-Luc Dubois’ off-season.
Bold Prediction: Pierre-Luc Dubois and Winnipeg come to terms on a long term contract extension once the calendar flips to 2023. Once and for all putting any rumors about his long term commitment to Winnipeg to rest.
More Predictions
Rick Bowness comes in and leads the Winnipeg Jets back to the playoffs as the two seed in the central division and wins one round.
Kevin Cheveldayoff proves doubters wrong by pulling off more than one franchise altering trade before the trade deadline and setting Winnipeg up for long term success for years to come.
Jets Fan Feedback
Feel free to comment with your predictions for the Winnipeg Jets this upcoming season. Good, bad, somewhere in between; let’s hear them.
The Scoring Touch 