Will Hellebuyck actually play for the Jets after suspension ends?

Things are about to get interesting for the Winnipeg Jets, who could get three-time Vezina Trophy-winning goaltender Connor Hellebuyck back as soon as Friday, when the suspension he incurred from the team for failing to report to training camp amid his trade request ends.

According to a report from Sportsnet NHL insider Elliotte Friedman, Hellebuyck could either rejoin the team and play until a trade is found, or the Jets could pay the 33-year-old to remain at home.

In Hellebuyck’s absence, the Jets occupy fourth place in the Central Division with a 4-2-2 record and are 11th in the NHL with a team save percentage of .901, as new acquisitions Stuart Skinner (free agent signing) and Clay Stevenson (waiver claim) have filled in admirably for the 2025 Hart Trophy winner.

On Monday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, host and former NHL goaltender Carter Hutton was joined by fellow former NHL goaltender Devan Dubnyk and Kevin Woodley of InGoal Magazine to discuss Hellebuyck’s impending return to the Jets as his suspension lapses.

Carter Hutton: To kick it off, we’re gonna start… Connor Hellebuyck. This has been like the biggest story in the NHL. The Jets are off to a good start. His suspension is lifted soon. What’s your take on that? Is he going to play a game again for the Winnipeg Jets, or is this done?

Kevin Woodley: I wish I knew. I think it’s remarkable actually that both sides kept this quiet for so long. I assumed that this was, you know, him not wanting to be there, but the fact this was actually a suspension per the reporting of Elliotte Friedman over the weekend. To keep this that quiet for that long tells you how badly everybody just wants to move along here. I don’t see him coming back. Maybe Friday and the fact that the suspension has to be lifted serves as a deadline. I just don’t see this as a win for anyone at this point, and as the clock starts to tick here, you guys know better than me. It’s not easy to catch that moving train to come back three weeks into a season, either. No training camp… Look at Jeremy Swayman… The only blip in his career is the year where he missed training camp. There’s just a whole lot of uncertainty. It’s not good for anyone. It’s the best goalie in the game, and we don’t get to see him play, so I don’t know what the solution is.

Carter Hutton: Dubs, how do you feel about this, this while situation? How do you show your face again in that locker room if you’re Connor Hellebuyck?

Devan Dubnyk: It’s hard. There’s no positive outcome to this, really. There’s no way you can go in the room and not have it be weird. I’m sure he’s had conversations with teammates. It’s not something, I don’t think, where you just go completely dark. Obviously these are guys you live with, play with every single day, so I’m sure these guys have been talking to him, asking what’s going on. I just don’t see how, if he comes back and starts practicing to get ready, maybe show other teams that he’s ready to go, whatever. I just don’t see how, especially that Winnipeg’s playing well, how can you go play a game? How can you go play a game for the Winnipeg Jets and not have it be kind of a lose-lose situation? Unless you go out there and stand on your head and get a shutout. It’s just kind of an awkward situation that they’re in, and it probably didn’t need to get here on both sides.

You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode below…