- David Pagnotta says the Panthers reached out to Winnipeg about Connor Hellebuyck last month and are still in the mix
- A full no-movement clause means any deal only happens if Hellebuyck signs off on it
- Read below for the Bobrovsky angle, the rumored price, and where the Jets actually stand
Connor Hellebuyck is already a name on the goalie market.
The Florida Panthers reached out to the Winnipeg Jets about their franchise goaltender last month, and they have not backed off. David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period laid it out on the DFO Rundown, saying Florida checked in on Hellebuyck and is still in the mix as the offseason picks up.
Florida’s interest tracks. Sergei Bobrovsky is heading toward free agency with contract talks stalled, so the Panthers could be shopping for a starter. Coach Paul Maurice knows Hellebuyck as well as anyone too, after running the bench around him for years in Winnipeg.
The DFO Rundown crew got into Hellebuyck’s situation and the wider goalie market:
Winnipeg is not shopping him. Pagnotta said the Jets do not want to move Hellebuyck, but added that if the goalie decides he wants out, they will have to work through it.
That part is the whole thing. Hellebuyck holds a full no-movement clause on the seven-year, $8.5 million deal that keeps him among the league’s highest-paid goalies, so he controls where he lands and whether he moves at all.
The noise picked up after a rough year. Hellebuyck called Winnipeg’s season “unacceptable” in his exit interview after a 23-23-11 finish and a .895 save percentage, the first time his number dipped below .900.
A team that won the Presidents’ Trophy the year before missed the playoffs entirely. That is the kind of drop that gets a star goaltender thinking.
If Florida ever pushes this to the front of the line, the price will be heavy. Pagnotta floated a package built around the Panthers’ No. 9 overall pick in this year’s draft, plus a young player like Mackie Samoskevich or Jack Devine.
Hellebuyck is 33 now, a year removed from sweeping the Hart and Vezina. Goalies like that almost never reach the market, which is why Florida picked up the phone the moment the door cracked.
