Winnipeg Jets season snapshot awards

With the NHL pausing the 2019-20 regular season on March 12 due to the concerns surrounding the coronavirus, NHL.com is taking stock of each of the League's 31 teams.

Today, the award-worthy candidates for the Winnipeg Jets at the pause:

The 2019-20 NHL season began with the Winnipeg Jets having to cope with drastic roster changes and needing to reorganize their game to in order to contend in the Central Division and Western Conference.

The Jets have found a way. They hold the first wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the West and are two points behind the Dallas Stars for third place in the Central.

There have been some strong seasons for the Jets, who are trying to qualify for the playoffs for a third straight time.

To showcase the best performances, here are the top players in various categories:

MVP

Connor Hellebuyck is 31-21-5 with a 2.57 goals-against average and .922 save percentage and figures to be a contender in Vezina Trophy voting for the best goalie in the NHL. Hellebuyck leads the NHL with six shutouts, has faced the most shots (1,796), has made the second-most starts (56, two behind Carey Price of the Montreal Canadiens), and is second in wins (four behind Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning).

Rookie

Video: VGK@WPG: Hellebuyck stymies Vegas to earn the shutout will still be a rookie when he returns to the Jets and the NHL in the future, as soon as next season. The 19-year-old defenseman had five points (one goal, four assists) in eight NHL games to start the season before he was returned to Lukko in Liiga, Finland's top professional league. Heinola showed the vision, mobility and puck-moving skills that led Winnipeg to select him with the No. 20 pick in the 2019 NHL Draft.

Defenseman

Neal Pionk was new to the revamped defense this season but quickly assumed a leadership role. The 24-year-old, in his third NHL season, leads Winnipeg defensemen with 45 points (six goals, 39 assists) in 71 games, and Winnipeg skaters in ice time per game (23:23). Pionk is not big (5-foot-10, 186 pounds) but has proven to be resilient and mobile while Winnipeg has scrambled at times to bring order to its defensive game.

Defensive forward

Andrew Copp's value to the Jets has been enhanced this season, given the forward's ability to play up and down the lineup. In addition to being Winnipeg's most-used penalty-killer (143:45 of shorthanded ice time), he has played wing with No. 1 center Mark Scheifele and has been asked to carry major responsibility as the Jets' checking center. That was especially important when center Adam Lowry, his usual linemate, missed 20 games with an upper-body injury (Jan. 21- March 6). Copp has 26 points (10 goals, 16 assists) in 63 games and is on pace to surpass his NHL career highs of 11 goals (2018-19) and 28 points (2017-18).

Comeback player

Hellebuyck's bounce-back timing has been excellent, given the roster changes for the Jets. The 26-year-old has improved in every category from last season, except wins, when he was 34-23-3 with a 2.90 GAA, .913 save percentage and two shutouts. Hellebuyck's play has more closely mirrored his 2017-18 season (44-11-9, 2.36 GAA, .924 save percentage), when he finished second in Vezina Trophy voting behind Pekka Rinne of the Nashville Predators. In his past six starts, Hellebuyck was 5-1-0, with a 1.34 GAA and .957 save percentage.