Winnipeg Jets Training Camp Preview with Murat Ates

[Music] He is back. He’s refreshed. He’s ready for hockey season. And he joins us now on WST. Morat, my friend. It’s great to talk to you. How was your summer? Wow. Uh, it’s great to talk to you. It’s great to be back. Summer was a blur, but I spent it well with some family, some overseas visit, checked in with my mom. She’s uh she’s subscribed to the Athletic now. It took me a long enough time. Uh it was it’s been great. Hus, glad to see you. How are you? Uh I’m great. I mean, you know, you come out of uh we had a hell of a time with a whole bunch of listeners and Bomber fans out in Regina on the weekend for the big football game for the Labor Day Classic. And for me, this is maybe my favorite time of year. I mean, we’re doing our fantasy football stuff. We’ve got NFL kickoff this weekend. We got the Banjo Bowl on Saturday, the first NFL Sunday, and then Morat, in two weeks, we’re going to see the Winnipeg Jets back on the ice. It was uh it kind of really felt like September, not only with the kind of the weather changing after Labor Day, but what a sight yesterday on the Jet social medias of Jonathan Taves wheeling around in the heritage uni out at the Iceplex. Um I’m really looking forward to this training camp. I mean, the intrigue of Taves, um, the latest on the captain, Adam Lowry, um, and that home opener. I mean, when that team is introduced, a president’s trophy banner is raised, a first ever division trophy raised, Tav’s introduction, and probably what’ll be the most heartwarming part of it all is, of course, Mark Schiffley is back the first time in front of the fans since the passing of his father and his gutsy game six performance. I mean, there is a lot to uh be excited about and look forward to before we even get to the regular season. Yeah, it’s crazy that I don’t get mad when the 30 kilometer an hour signs kick in again because I’m okay, it means that it’s go time and you know people, okay, yeah, safety and all of that too, right? But like it is a symbol of the season. Um, and I’m excited for camp as well. There’s so much to see. everything you just named. I mean, Mark Shley, the emotional note he ended last season on, can’t wait to see what he’s uh what he’s got in store for this year, not over only in sort of processing everything he’s gone through, but making his team Canada bid. It’s going to be a big season for him in so many different ways. Jonathan Taves, I saw Remo pulled that image. Uh well done. You’re still sharp, Remo. Good to see it. Um, I’m sure there’s a lot of Jets fans who are just moved by that site as well. Um, I I have some folks in the inbox who are a little trepidacious about Taves as well, but I’m going to say like my experience has been maybe 955. Like the overwhelming majority of Jets fans are jacked and I’m sure that like seeing him is going to be uh going to be a big deal for a certain generation of hockey fan for sure. Even Gusto Nyquist, what is he capable of? Um, what about all the AHL guys that they signed who might not be AHL guys like a a locker doer or a Tanner Pearson or probably Cole Keepy’s an NHL player the way I see it? There are a lot of changes. Eers has gone. There’s a lot of new faces as well. Um, yeah, it’s going to be it’s going to be a really unique one. And then where do they go from a President’s Trophy situation and a first round win? It’s going to be a lot to watch. Yeah. You know, it’s funny. I uh I I was at the uh the kickoff today for the HSSE Foundation lottery and you know saying hi to some people. A few people came up and introduced themselves and inevitably uh you know hey how do you think the Jets are going to do this year? And I said well listen I think it’s unlikely you go backto back as president’s trophy winners. Uh, and I think more so than any, especially with the loss of Lowry, the loss of, you know, Eers not being around, you’re bringing in Taves, you’re bringing in Nikfist, potentially a real different look maybe on the fourth line as well. Like, this could be far more of a process of a team learning about each other and coming together as opposed to the one that raced out of the gate at 15 and one last year, which really at the end of the day was the difference between winning the President’s Trophy and just being a strong playoff team. Yeah, what an incredible record setting start that was power like it the power play was a big part of that too. So that I’m going to be interested to see what it can do in its second year. Eers will be off it. Who gets that spot? Probably Cole Perfetti and he had success there. Um could they look for a way to rope Jonathan Taves into that spot as well? Who else is available? Gus of Nyquist. you know, there’s going to be uh there’s going to be a little bit of shuffle there, but I agree with you that it’s going to be a learning process. Not just them getting to know each other, but even from a management point of view, where they’re going to sort of spend part of the season assessing, well, how close to good enough is this team? They’ve left cap space uh unused heading into the season, just like they did last year, and that usually means the plan is to spend it at some point later if they’re in a playoff spot. Um, so there could be some mid-season additions depending on what opens up and how well Taves, Nike, etc. can sort of fill fill the void. Um, see what happens in in Lowry’s absence at the start, too. Um, it’s kind of a lot of moving parts in an attempt to keep the same level of quality performance in the regular season. And um, that’s going to be a like a gardening situation. The work will never be done, I don’t think, as they try to maintain their level. Um, you know what it see? I’ll just kind of get back into the summer for a minute. Um, of course, you know, you were away doing traveling, but credit to you still all over the Dylan Samberg news and I believe you had that first. What What was it like? Were you in Europe at that point? What was it like kind of being on that beat so much and then working from very remotely? Um, and then just in addition to that, thoughts on uh where they settled to get uh Samberg back on a shorter term deal that I think a lot of people thought was coming. Yeah, it was an interesting process because I was in Turkey visiting family, right? I spent, you know, a few weeks there and I was making the rounds and and all that sort of stuff. So, I did my very best to not be on my phone and I turned it on at some very very key times and made some key contacts or what have you. I’m pleased to say that yeah, I did break that and it was from uh it was poolside. So, it was kind of one of the nicer days in being a a sports journalist and that came together really nicely. Got to love technology. Morat. Oh my goodness. Yeah. Um grateful for that. Uh the deal was an interesting one because I think the idea was that Samberg and Winnipeg were open to a long-term deal uh like throughout the process and that’s true and there were some long-term deals discussed and ultimately it was a question of of sort of pricing Samberg and when you consider his value to the team um you know I’m just putting together a survey at the Athletic right now and fans voted him the second best defense defenseman and the most improved player. This is an important cog for the future, but he doesn’t put up a lot of points. He wasn’t on the power play. Are you going to price him like slav how how will you project his growth? All that sort of stuff. And ultimately, they weren’t really able to agree to what the right number should be for six, seven years, whatever the the longterm deals that they discussed were. And so at 3 years, at 5.75, I have to think that Samberg gets capital paid next time around. Um, if you’re the Winnipeg Jets, I would have hoped for longer term. If you’re Samberg, um, great. You’ve got this one locked up. It’s a longer, you might call it a bridge, and you’re probably going to do quite well next time around. So, um, it’s it’s great for both parties that they’re reunited and the relationship continues. And also, you might have hoped for a little bit longer from Winnipeg’s point of view. Yeah. You know, my read of this is that and I’m interested in your take on it that there was some like that the ask on the Samberg side for a long-term deal was big big money. I mean, the way I read the contract, Morat, is that he’s getting what would have been the ARB number, like, you know, kind of the 425 or whatever it was for, you know, the final year, which was just halfway in between what the Jets offered and and what the Samberg uh, you know, for arbitration, but then the next two seasons is actually more than Jacob Slavven’s contract is that is kicking in this year. like those two UFA deals, those sorry, those two UFA years that they bought, they were actually paying top dollar for. I would have assumed that they would have been willing to extend that beyond. But it’s quite clear and rightfully so that the Samber camp feels like over these next few seasons we could be seeing some increased offensive contribution and some more points which at the end of the day more often than not is really what’s calibrating those contracts up. Yeah, I I think that there’s a lot to that. And for Samberg, he’s going to put up points just by playing big top four minutes behind Winnipeg’s top six forward group. He he’s not going to make it to the power play. He’s not going to put up those kind of those flashy numbers that even a Neil Pian on the second unit’s going to do, but he’s going to put up more points and he’ll have more seasons to bank on because one of the limiting factors from his point of or sorry, from Winnipeg’s point of view is that he’d only done it once. He was a top four defenseman and great at it for one year. And usually teams want to see that happen a couple more times before they go big. From Samberg’s point of view or from his camp’s point of view, I think that you’ve got it surrounded that, you know, that 6.5 mil that he’ll get next year and the year after on the 5.75 million cap hit. That’s an attempt to price his UFA seasons. If he had gotten just a one-year arbitration deal, he’d be a free agent next year. And that number goes way up. So Winnipeg did buy some free agency away from him. And I think that the read is this that you’re making that you know the the ask would be more that the numbers they weren’t able to agree on what he should be paid on a really long-term deal. That’s that’s true. That’s a fact in in terms of um in terms of getting Winnipeg and Samberg’s camp to agree to what the right number is if they’re going to do something like seven years. And honestly, um, you know, it would be well above the 5.75 AAV that that they ultimately settled on. You know what’s going to be way more than that? Uh, Kyle Connor’s new deal. Um, are you hearing anything? I know you’re just back on it. I mean, uh, we just talked to Dave Pagnata and he suggested that if they hadn’t already, they’ll be getting together very shortly um to discuss this new deal. There’s a willingness to stick around. Obviously, the team wants to sign him. um your thoughts on that where it might end up and does this get done before the start of the regular season because to me as much as and we can talk about McDavid’s situation he’s maybe a different category but Kaprosoft Eel all of that I would say that the urgency for the Jets for clarity on Kyle Connor is greater than almost any of those markets because some of the other things that the Winnipeg Jets deal with and knowing that in my opinion they cannot go down the same road they did last here with Nikolai Eers losing such an important asset for nothing at the end of the year. Yeah, you draft a player of that quality, you develop them, they become a star and you know, Nicola is more of a five on five star power play last year. Kyle Connor in another tier of NHLwide stardom. Uh first line, first power play minutes for a long time. You need you need to know what what is going to happen there. Um, and to to let a player like that go for for nothing would be really really painful for the Winnipeg Jets, just as or even more painful I think for them than the Nikolai Eelers loss was this summer. Uh, so yeah, it’s it’s a top priority. It’s probably the top priority and it’s something that the Jets have been preparing for for well over a year at this point. Like this is this has been something on their radar for for an extensive period of time. Um, I I’m not since returning to to work this week, I’m not super plugged in on on the situation, but I can I can say this. Um, Connor has gotten first line minutes and a big first line minutes, more first line minutes than even first line players on other teams. Uh, he’s gotten first line power play minutes for a really long time. He plays even on the PK sometimes. Um, he plays with Mark Schiffley more often than not. this is one of the best situations and best scenarios for him on the ice, I think. And I think that, you know, the sense I’ve always gotten is that he appreciates that and uh and and values it. It’s also just an incredible stroke of good fortune from the Winnipeg Jets perspective, just as it was with Connor Halabuk, that Kyle Connor in terms of off the ice, he likes his outdoor time, he likes his boating time, he likes his um he’s part of that crew in Winnipeg where they they value that that sort of away from the ice culture. He’s not the flashiest guy. He’s probably not um I mean I don’t know his UFA priorities but I think the the image is that he’s not necessarily going to seek out that New York type of deal or or any of those things. Cal Connor the person I think fits into Winnipeg very well as well. Um so all told I would say I’m I’m a lot more optimistic about a Connor extension heading into this season than I was about a Nikolai’s extension at this time last year. And not that you have any reason to remember specifics, but in my bold predictions for the year, I call dealers walking at this time a year ago. Uh I’m not really thinking that that’s the case with Kyle Connor. Great. We’ve got a bold prediction that a deal is impending any moment now. And uh No, maybe not anymore. You missed my lawyer speak. I kind of hemmed it hot on that. E no, but you know what? Listen, I mean, I I I think that it’s something that both sides need to sit down and and and get clarity on. And I would hope and maybe I’m not willing to assume, but would certainly hope that that common ground can be found. I mean, listen, I don’t think that they’re going to try and nickel and dime Kyle Connor. He has absolutely done everything that they’ve asked for him. He stepped up his game in some ways that don’t necessarily translate to the late to the score sheet, and I think the organization’s appreciative of that. And the bottom line is that this guy scores like nobody else on the Winnipeg Jets and you get paid for that. And I mean the cap’s gone up. There’s a number of individuals. The one thing that Pagnata brought brought up that could be a challenge I guess for the Winnipeg Jets is that you’ve got all of these guys in similar situations that are NHL superstars. there could be um hesitancy to be the first one that signs that deal just because often when other deals are signed all of a sudden the numbers change a little bit and we’ve really seen that as inflation is cranked up through free agency over the last 6 months. Yeah. with especially with the cap making its incremental increases like substantial increases I should say players do wait and see and and and watch and like you know we’re just talking about Samberg you don’t think Kandre Miller’s deal influenced what the ask from the the Samberg camp was like these are all connected so I think that that’s a good point that you bring up from David Pegnata like there there probably is some of that going on at the same time I guess I would be overstating like my level of knowledge to think that Kyle Connor wouldn’t want to maximize every last little thing, but my perception is is is really that it’s going to be about fit between city and player. And Winnipeg won’t be hesitant to to really put a big number in front of Kyle Connor. And you know, my impression has always been that he’s been contented in in Winnipeg and and appreciates what he has here. Yeah. And and you know what, I’ll say this, too. And I mean, there are a bunch of intangibles. I mean, dollars and cents is what everyone’s going to be talking about when something is signed and we we break it down that way. But one thing and this is is is massive credit to you know the organization overall. But when you think of the way that Bones came in changed the culture the step forward that the team took under Scott Arneal and just how tight-knit this group is with so many of the guys that he’s come up already committed to long-term deals. Um it really does seem like the fit has already been established. his other the guys that he would be looking to the most have already committed to the Winnipeg Jets and I think that you know as opposed to maybe the Eer situation. Um for Kyle Connor I think that is very important to him and um it certainly is something the Winnipeg Jets have going for them. What they’ve done off the ice, the nature of that team off the ice and and how big a part of it Kyle Connor has been and hopefully will continue to be. Yeah. I I almost take it from the Gabriel Ardi press zoom after his extension where you know with Shley and Hellabuk in place like that the players themselves can see sort of this four to five year window of Winnipeg being one of the better teams in the NHL and having a really a realistic shot to go deep. I wouldn’t be surprised if that perception is held by Winnipeg’s leading point scorer and Kyle Connor 97 points last season. Um, so part of, you know, when when Winnipeg Jets cornerstones have resigned, there’s usually been that perception that that winning is kind of around the corner. And I think back to Blake Wheeler and Connor Halabuk way back in 2018. This feels more similar to that to me than Eer having his, you know, his perspective on on signing with a different organization. Um, obviously anything can happen and all that sort of stuff. I would suggest Kyle Connor at 28 years old turning 29. Um if if there’s a four to five year window where Winnipeg could win and believes that it can win and he’s a part of that like you might see a really expensive contract figure for him that he’s able to more or less live up to over that period of time. I’m more concerned about what happens if it’s seven uh years and what number it is and can Kyle Connor at 35 years old produce in a way that’s enough to make up for him being more of an average two-way player like that sort of thing. Um and I don’t think that that’s a realistic concern from Winnipeg’s point of view. I think they’re all in on this next four or five years or so. Um Morat, we’ll spend more time on this topic, I’m sure, until it’s done. Um, but as we look ahead to training camp, uh, I wanted to ask you about a couple guys that’ll be looking to crack the team from the Manitoba Moose. Brad Lambert, who had a real down year last year, which the entire team did, frankly, and Nikita Chibberov, who of course was injured, wasn’t even el wasn’t available um, for even a call up to be a black ace. Who do you think if I So, it’s just the start of September. We won’t hold you to this, but right now, who do you think plays more games with the Winnipeg Jets next year? Lambert or Chibberov? I’m going to guess Brad Lambert. And I’m going to guess that both of those numbers, both players games played in the NHL are quite low this season. Um, coming off of really average AHL seasons last year where the Manitoba Moose finished 31 of 32 teams, they had to work so hard for every crack of offense that they found. And um, guys who you based on their track record of of excellence and offensive ability like a Brad Lambert where you might hope he could crack things open a little bit more for himself. It wasn’t really happening that way. you got a little bit more effectiveness out of the Parker Fords of the world at at that level, guys who could sort of bulldoze their way or bulldog their way into dangerous spots. And what you saw Winnipeg go out and do this year or the Manitoba Moose under Craig Heisinger go out and do is add a lot of veteran uh capable, strong two-way AHL players who can score. I think that’s part of the Okay, we’re gonna take one more year. We’re gonna keep Lambert and Chibriov and Braden Jagger and Kobby Barlo, I suppose, and and and all of this and give them the best situation we can possibly give them in an attempt to to really set them on on the right track to be top six type prospects again. And then I just see so many NHL players in the way. I I would be amazed, and credit to anybody who changes this and just proves me wrong, I’d be amazed if either of those players break camp with the Jets. interesting stuff. The um I mean the we would be paying attention to all of those, you know, younger players to see how they perform and and show up and particularly Braden Joerger and I guess Kobe Barlo now that he’s going to be a pro as well. The the thought process I think amongst many fans that if someone is going to crack the lineup, it’ll be someone that has been around a little bit longer and both of those players would seemingly have the opportunity. But I’m sort of with you, especially when you look at the Nikas signing. I mean, you can sort of figure out who’s in most of the spots already, uh, and it does make it an uphill grind, but your point about what they’ve done with the Moose in the offseason, I think, is important. I think that, you know, I’ve heard from some people in the organization that they want to make sure that a season like last year for the Moose does not happen again. Um because it can be a really long season when you’re getting your ass kicked night in and night out, especially for younger players and you want them not only to feel like they can be at their best and the team is competitive, but you’re playing meaningful, important games. You’re having the opportunity to play in the Calder Cup playoffs before you graduate to the Stanley Cup playoffs and just it’s been trending in the wrong direction. And many of those signings that maybe weren’t splashy when you’re thinking about the NHL can make big time a big time difference hopefully for the Moose. So those players, especially the ones that haven’t weren’t there last year like a Jagger or a Barllo are coming to into a situation where it’s not you’re just looking at the calendar every year and seeing how close you are to the end of the season. You’re excited about the game that’s next on the schedule. Yeah, that makes perfect sense to me. And like it’s about people putting people in positions to have success, right? Like I think that that team was treading water at best through a lot of last season. And you don’t really want those for players that you want to have meaningful NHL careers in the in the long haul. You don’t want their like their spirit to break or you don’t want them to go off of their own program or try to do things by themselves. And I think most of what I’ve heard has been actually really positive about the dispositions and character. But you don’t want to run multiple seasons like that together. Um, great by you to to have that from some people in the organization saying, “Hey, we need that to be a one-off.” Um, it’s like I don’t know, maybe a lot of fans if if you grew up playing can relate to this. Like if you ever played a level above and above like you were called up to a different age group or something like that and it feels like things are a little bit quick and then you eventually catch up or you don’t like uh the the Moose players who I think would be viable NHL prospects were like probably playing in that almost disadvantaged position by not being supported by by elite AHL players last season and and ideally they do turn that around. Morat, it is so good to have you back, my friend. I can’t wait to uh read your latest in the Athletic uh when it’s coming up and of course continue our conversations throughout the season, but especially seeing you. It’s only a couple weeks. We’ll be down at the Iceplex getting things going. Uh let’s uh let’s get it rolling. Yeah, let’s do it. So glad to be back and yeah, my first one’s going up tomorrow, so we’re we’re back at it here. Well, looking forward to it, my friend. Thanks for doing this. Glad you had such a great summer. Now, uh get ready for a great season coming up in just a couple weeks. Thanks, H. Appreciate it. There’s Mara Tesh. Great to have him back on the program tomorrow in the Athletic. Uh he returns with the latest on his coverage of the Winnipeg Jets as we countdown to training camp coming up. [Music]

Andrew “Hustler” Paterson is joined by Murat Ates of The Athletic to break down the biggest Winnipeg Jets storylines heading into training camp.

From Jonathan Toews skating in Jets colors, to Mark Scheifele’s emotional return, Adam Lowry’s injury absence, Kyle Connor’s looming contract talks, and the battle for roster spots—this is your full Jets camp preview.

Murat also shares insight on Dylan Samberg’s new contract, Brad Lambert & Nikita Chibrikov’s chances with the big club, and what management is planning heading into the season.

Stay tuned for all things Winnipeg Jets as camp kicks off!

Topics:
Welcome Back Murat Ates (00:00)
Biggest Jets Training Camp Storylines (01:10)
Jonathan Toews in a Jets Jersey (02:20)
Scheifele’s Return After His Father’s Passing (04:00)
Dylan Samberg Contract Breakdown (06:00)
Kyle Connor Contract Extension Talk (10:40)
Jets’ 4–5 Year Window to Win (15:30)
Prospects to Watch: Lambert & Chibrikov (18:00)
Manitoba Moose Rebuild & Depth Moves (21:00)
Final Thoughts Heading into Camp (24:00)

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