WINNIPEG – The tone set by Winnipeg Jets players during Friday’s final media availability carried over into Monday, as head coach Scott Arniel and general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff addressed the media.
Cheveldayoff started off by saying the expectations that fans had were high but internally – they were higher.
“Sitting here today, we all feel the emotions, the disappointment, of not living up to those expectations,” said Cheveldayoff.
“When you go through something like this as an organization, it’s incumbent on everyone - starting with myself - to ask themselves critical questions of what could’ve been done better and what we need to do to move forward to get back to achieving the standards we’ve set for ourselves.”
Not many teams can have a stretch where not winning for 11 straight games and find their way into the playoffs. That drought was brought up a lot by the players as to a reason for lack of success, Arniel touched on the uphill climb that created for the team.
“We went 6-2-2 after we finally got out of that 11-game stretch, but we were still chasing all year right up to the Olympics. We got to the break, we had a great second half but that was a tough run chasing five, six other teams to get ourselves in the playoffs,” said Arniel.
“Like I said earlier; there's a phrase out there, I forget who said it but, ‘You either win or you learn.’ If you don't go out and learn, if you don't go out and find out why you didn't win, you're just going to end up just kind of repeating the same thing.”
The hope is that the Jets have learned something from this up and down season that will get them back to where they were the previous two seasons, a contender for the Stanley Cup. Arniel was asked about what he will take from his second season as the head coach.
“I’m not the first coach this has happened to. I actually will reach out to coaches, and I will talk to different people – it’s not just about winning and losing, it’s about different stuff. At the end of the day, it sucks,” said Arniel.
“It’s a terrible feeling to be standing here today and explaining why we didn’t even make the playoffs after what happened last year. But it is about getting better and learning. Learn from it, so we’re not standing here next year.”
When Nikolaj Ehlers departed to join the Carolina Hurricanes, he took with him a reliable 20-goal presence. The season prior, Ehlers produced 22 power-play points, helping the Winnipeg Jets lead the NHL in that category. This year, that production dipped. Secondary scoring dried up for stretches, and injuries didn’t help — including a preseason setback for Cole Perfetti and offseason hip surgery for Adam Lowry.
Cheveldayoff admitted replacing a player like Ehlers isn’t straightforward in today’s NHL landscape.
“During the flat-cap era, you might’ve been able to find players who got squeezed out because teams couldn’t afford them,” said Cheveldayoff.
“Now, with more cap flexibility, you’re seeing teams keep their own free agents more often. So, replacing a player like Ehlers isn’t easy. That becomes the challenge — you either make a trade, draft and develop which takes time, or try your luck in free agency. Otherwise, you look within and find ways to make the players you already have better.”
Another significant drop-off for the Jets this season came in their play in their own end. After winning back-to-back Jennings Trophies as the NHL’s top defensive team — allowing 199 goals in 2023–24 and 191 the year prior — that number ballooned to 260 in 2025–26.
Unsurprisingly, that had a direct impact on Connor Hellebuyck’s numbers. He went from a Vezina and Hart Trophy season to posting a .895 save percentage — the lowest of his career — along with zero shutouts, something that had never happened during his time with the Jets.
Hellebuyck was very blunt when asked about the season last Friday, and his words didn’t go unnoticed by either the coach or the general manager.
“You don't become an elite player in this league unless you have that kind of emotion, that kind of fire, that kind of drive. But as far as putting the organization on notice, that's something that happens each and every day. It doesn't take someone to say it in public,” said Cheveldayoff.
“Each and every day, my job — whether it's over the course of a day, a week, or a month — is to find a way to fill the pieces, fill the gaps, and keep building toward something. I would not expect any of these players to come into exit meetings and say, ‘You know what, it's okay. It's alright.’”
Injuries forced the Jets to give several prospects extended looks, including Elias Salomonsson, Brad Lambert, Danny Zhilkin, Brayden Yager, and Nikita Chibrikov. Cheveldayoff also added youth and speed by bringing in Isak Rosén. Clearly, they are all part of the Jets’ future — but will they be part of the immediate future?
“We need these guys to be part of our future. And who that is? I don’t know — it’s up to the players. It’s their responsibility,” said Arniel. “When you come in September — and this was my message to these young guys when we left the other day — they’re going to go play with the Moose.
“Go have success there. Go play well. Go help them win. But if there’s a job available, go take it. Do everything you can. The things they can control are their attitude, their work ethic, and their conditioning.”
Another pressing issue for the Jets is the age of their core. Hellebuyck turns 33 next month, Mark Scheifele is already 33, Josh Morrissey just turned 31, and Kyle Connor will be 30 in December. Hellebuyck, Scheifele, and Connor all re-signed with the belief that this group would contend for a Stanley Cup each year.
“That’s the beauty of the sport. The focus — and if anything has to be reset — is that nothing will be given to you,” said Cheveldayoff. “It doesn’t matter if you make four or five trades or bring in four or five different people — you still have to earn it.
“Whatever group is assembled next year, we have to come in with the mindset that we have to earn it. There’s no easy path. If there was, 31 other teams might as well just go home.”
