Hellebuyck trade speculation ‘not worth our time,’ Jets captain Lowry says

WINNIPEG -- Connor Hellebuyck’s request to be traded away from the Winnipeg Jets made headlines around the NHL this offseason.

It can’t, however, be something the Jets worry about with training camp approaching, captain Adam Lowry said.

“Obviously the situation is what it is,” Lowry said after a captain’s practice on Tuesday. “(If) you spend so much time speculating on it you're going to drive yourself crazy. The situation is going to resolve itself one way or the other, and I think from our perspective we've got to focus on getting ourselves ready for camp, getting the team ready and things like that. And as long as he's a member of the Jets, we'll treat that situation as such.

“Until that time, I don't think it's worth our time in the locker room speculating what's going to happen. We've got to use the guys that are here and do our best to have a rebound year."

Hellebuyck, a three-time winner of the Vezina Trophy (2020, 2024, 2025), which is awarded to the best goalie in the NHL, released a statement Aug. 27 to publicly state he requested a trade, a request he said was made privately a few months prior.

"I have tried to handle the situation quietly and respectfully while giving the organization time to explore its options,” Hellebuyck said in the statement released by his agent, Ray Petkau. "With training camp approaching (on Sept. 16), I felt it was important to publicly confirm my request. My position has not changed. I believe moving on is the best path forward for me and my family.”

The 33-year-old is entering the third season of a seven-year, $59.5 million contract ($8.5 million average annual value) he signed with Winnipeg on Oct. 9, 2023. Hellebuyck won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player for the 2024-25 season, then helped Team USA win the gold medal at the 2026 Winter Olympics in February.

Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said on June 26 he was listening to trade offers for Hellebuyck, but he did not provide a definitive answer as to whether his franchise goalie requested a trade. All of this happened after Winnipeg went 35-35-12 and finished eight points behind the Los Angeles Kings for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference.

Hellebuyck has played his entire 11-season NHL career with the Jets, who selected him in the fifth round (No. 130) of the 2012 NHL Draft. Since entering the League during the 2015-16 season, he leads all goalies in games played (625), starts (615) and shutouts (45), and ranks second in wins (345) behind Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning (363).

“‘Helle’s’ a good friend of ours, so it's not something that we think is going to really impact the room,” Lowry said. “It's not going to create a big divide. It's a personal decision that he's made and one that he thinks is best for his family, and until that situation’s resolved we're just going to approach it … he’s our teammate, he's our friend and go from there.

“We’ve all got to worry about our own game -- the team game.”

Hellebuyck was 23-23-11 with a 2.86 goals-against average and .895 save percentage in 57 games last season. Winnipeg signed goalie Stuart Skinner as a free agent on July 1, presumably to serve as Hellebuyck’s backup. Skinner finished last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins after being traded by the Edmonton Oilers on Dec. 12. He helped the Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Final the previous two seasons.

“Getting to skate with Stu a bit in the summertime, (and) I think in talking to (Jets goalie coach Wade Flaherty) and stuff, (Skinner) has been a guy that (Flaherty) has had a lot of praise for and really believes in his game and really thinks he can help him,” Lowry said. “Kind of leading the Oilers to two Stanley Cup Finals, he's a really proven winner in this league and he will be a great compliment to whether it's ‘Helle’ or someone else.”

Dylan DeMelo, a Jets defenseman and Hellebuyck’s teammate the past seven seasons, said the latter’s trade request is “a hard situation overall.”

“I’ve never been a part of something like this; it’s all new to all of us,” DeMelo said. “I think we’re just going to cross that bridge when we get there. We just hope at the end of the day he’s happy.

“It’s tough, and when you kind of have equity with him, you’ve played with him, you’ve been in playoff series and games and all that stuff with him … for me individually, it’s kind of an extra wrinkle because we are friends. Our wives are friends, we have kids the same age. Our kids were playing hockey together and doing all this stuff, horsing around in the room and all these things. He is a friend, first and foremost.”

Winnipeg plays its season opener at home against the Boston Bruins on Oct. 2.