The Winnipeg Jets have made their big offseason signing.
No, general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and company were unable to retain unrestricted free agent forward Nikolaj Ehlers.
And the front office staff was also unable to land Minnesota’s Brock Boeser – the consensus No. 2 available UFA amid July’s free agent signing period.
Photo by Scott Stroh
But what the Jets’ management staff was able to do was avoid a short-term, bridge-style contract for forward Gabe Vilardi, rather signing him to a lucrative six-year, $45 million deal that will see him don the polar night blue through the 2030-31 season.
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“From the end of the season, whenever I started thinking about this stuff, it was never in any question for me,” Vilardi told local media when asked about the negotiation process. “I always wanted to be back in Winnipeg so it was important that we got it done and we didn’t get to arbitration and I don’t think anybody wanted that. So it was kind of, how it played out was almost inevitable.”
In fact, he took it one step further, actually professing Winnipeg as his second home.
“I mean, I’ve been here two years now and I love it in Winnipeg,” Vilardi added. “I think, you know, the opportunity for us to win in our window here of 4 or 5 years is something I’m very excited about and I want to be a part of. And I love Winnipeg. It’s a great spot. It feels like home to me. The fans, the team, the organization, everybody has been welcoming to me in Winnipeg since I’ve been there and it’s been great. So it made it a pretty easy decision for me.”
It’s really not all that often that someone who has grown up near the busy metropolis of the Greater Toronto Area and played the first part of his professional career in the warm climate of Los Angeles expresses his desire to be a city that regularly dips into some of the coldest temperatures in North America when the hockey season rolls around.
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“I think the perception (of Winnipeg) is tough,” Vilardi reflected. “For me, for example, when I played in L.A. and you come to Winnipeg, you’re staying on Portage, you don’t really leave that downtown area and it’s freezing cold. So you’re like, “wow, this is kind of dark.” It’s not something that you’re looking forward to going out and enjoying a dinner, kind of thing. But once you get to Winnipeg and you leave the downtown area and go to your neighbourhoods in River Heights and Tuxedo… whatever it is. For me, personally, it feels like home. I like that.
“On the outside for guys looking in, you have to figure out what you want,” he continued. “Do you want to go live in a warm climate and maybe play on a worse team, or do you want to come to Winnipeg and, sure, it’s minus-30, but you’re going to be on a good team. At the end of the day for me, it’s about hockey. I want to win, I want to be a good player. That’s my top priority in life. So it’s easy to overlook the cons and look at the pros for me.”
Winnipeg most definitely has been a ‘good team’ over Vilardi’s stay. Finishing fourth out of 32 in Vilardi’s first season, the Jets actually improved to be the leagues’ No. 1 squad for 2024-25. However, that success did not follow them through the postseason, as the team bowed out in six games to the Dallas Stars in the second round this past spring.
“I believe in our group,” Vilardi shared.
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“I think this past year we obviously showed what we’re capable of in the regular season. And obviously the playoffs didn’t end up our way, but I think we competed there and I think just the opportunity of this window we have where I truly believe we have a great opportunity to win and I want to be a part of that and I think we can we can accomplish that.”
But just how much longer can Winnipeg maintain its winning ways? According to Vilardi, the number within the dressing room is four-to-five seasons.
“I think our window is four or five years here and I think we have a really good shot, and I want to be a part of it. I am super excited to keep growing as an individual and keep growing as a team and I think our mindset is to win now and we have the team to do it.”
Vilardi now joins Connor Hellebuyck, Mark Scheifele and Neal Pionk as cornerstone pieces locked in under contract through 2031. Having added Gus Nyquist and Tanner Pearson in the offseason, as well as re-signing Morgan Barron and Haydn Fleury, Cheveldayoff’s last order of business is sorting out a new deal for shut-down defenceman Dylan Samberg. With just over $10 million left to spend, he shouldn’t have a problem doing so, and then some.
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“We have got the same coaching staff and the core group is still there,” Vilardi said of the this year’s makeup. “Every year there is not going to be the exact same roster, there is going to be change always. We are going to welcome the new guys in and we are still a very good team.”