- Adam Lowry says the Jets can’t spend camp guessing at how the Connor Hellebuyck trade request ends
- Dylan DeMelo called it “an extra wrinkle” and admitted he has never dealt with anything like it
- Read below for the full quotes from Winnipeg’s informal skate and where the situation stands
Adam Lowry is not going to let Connor Hellebuyck’s trade request run the Winnipeg Jets’ training camp.
The Jets captain was asked Tuesday, after Winnipeg’s informal skate, how the room plans to handle a franchise goalie who has publicly asked out. Lowry did not dance around it, per NHL.com’s Darrin Bauming.
“(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.”
“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.”
Lowry also pushed back on the idea that the request splits the group. Watch him explain why he thinks the room stays intact:
Dylan DeMelo took a softer line. The veteran defenseman was asked how the request has landed with him personally, and his answer went past hockey.
“For me, individually, it’s an extra wrinkle. We’re friends. Our wives are friends, we have kids the same age playing hockey together and all that stuff. It’s definitely a hard situation overall. I’ve never been a part of something like this.”
Hellebuyck went public on Aug. 27 with a statement through agent Ray Petkau, confirming a request he had made privately months earlier. The 33-year-old is entering year three of a seven-year, $59.5 million deal with an $8.5 million cap hit.
General manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said back on June 26 that he was listening on offers. Nothing has moved since, and Winnipeg has been sitting in no man’s land on the asking price.
The three-time Vezina winner and reigning 2026 Olympic gold medalist went 23-23-11 with a 2.86 goals-against average and a .895 save percentage last season while the Jets finished 35-35-12 and missed the playoffs by eight points. Winnipeg signed Stuart Skinner on July 1, presumably to back him up.
Here’s the full availability from Winnipeg’s skate:
Camp opens Sept. 16. Unless Cheveldayoff finds a deal in the next week, Lowry gets to test his own advice with Hellebuyck stretching in the same room.
