There was one topic for this month’s mailbag that drew more attention than all of the others combined.
It wasn’t the trade deadline, Jonathan Toews, Winnipeg’s many pending free agents, its top prospects, systems, or chance to win the Stanley Cup. It was about an affable, polarizing, 6-foot-7 defenceman named Logan Stanley who has become a third-pairing fixture despite many readers’ opinions that he doesn’t deserve the role. Why does Stanley get the opportunity that he does? What do Kevin Cheveldayoff and Scott Arniel have to say about it — and what do we think of their responses?
Don’t worry, we covered those other topics too.
Note: Submitted questions have been edited for clarity and length.
What is the deal with Logan Stanley? — Marvin L.
A ton of you asked some version of this question. I chose yours, Marvin, because I saw it first, it had the most likes, and you phrased it like a stereotypical Seinfeld joke about airplane food. The rest of your preamble spoke to Stanley’s usage, referencing healthy scratches last year and overuse this season, while wondering why Ville Heinola wasn’t getting the same opportunity.
As it so happens, I’ve had the chance to talk to Kevin Cheveldayoff and Scott Arniel about Stanley in recent days.
“I’ve never told a coach who to put in the lineup,” Cheveldayoff said on Tuesday. “I’ve never seen a coach make a decision not with the best interest of trying to win.”
Cheveldayoff then said that no player is perfect, while pointing out Stanley played 11 games during Winnipeg’s 15-1-0 start to the season. Later, when I pressed about the assets sent out of Winnipeg at times Stanley was protected — the losses of Johnathan Kovacevic and Declan Chisholm via waivers and Stanley’s expansion draft protection in lieu of Dylan DeMelo — Cheveldayoff bristled. He pointed to Stanley’s role on the 2021 Jets that swept Edmonton in the first round of the playoffs and the two goals he scored in Montreal to follow; I think his point was that back in 2021, during Seattle’s expansion, Stanley’s star appeared to be on the rise.
I bristle at that because I wrote at length in June 2021 that Stanley’s most likely career was that of a third-pairing defenceman. A best-case option was that Stanley would squeeze into top-four impact for a couple of years at his peak. I believed in a patient tack with the then-23-year-old defenceman, but Stanley was so demonstrably sheltered and his goals against Montreal so non-indicative of his playoff impact — and the evidence was available at the time.
I should point out that I like Stanley. In our dealings he’s been kind, generous with his time and funny in an understated way. I like the idea of a player with his size and strength and it’s fundamental to my values that depth NHL players are among the world’s best athletes, full stop.
Winnipeg’s investment in Stanley still looks like a hope play to me. He wins his minutes when he plays a sheltered, third pairing role — and that’s important — but he also occupies the roster spot that seems most in need of an upgrade. He puts his team shorthanded a lot. His defensive reads aren’t fast enough to make up for slow acceleration — and that includes the PK, where opposing units have had success isolating Stanley down low. I like when he jumps into the rush and he’s shown signs of knowing when to activate in the offensive zone, but he’s also 26 and his ceiling on that front is not sky-high. I don’t agree with the vitriol that’s sent his way online — whether he’s effective or ineffective on any given night, he’s a person chasing a dream — but he’s made enough defensive miscues for me to think he’s a depth defenceman without top-four potential.
So yes, there’s substantial sunk cost here. The Jets traded up to take Stanley and have lost assets to make sure they didn’t lose him. There’s a chance Heinola is next in line on that front. (My opinion on Heinola: he is not the answer right now, either — don’t underestimate the impact of time missed due to injury — but he can’t develop from the press box.)
Ville Heinola is competing with Logan Stanley for a depth spot in the Jets’ defence corps. (Gary A. Vasquez / Imagn Images)
Whenever Arniel has been asked about his lineup decisions, he’s given answers that struck me as part of the truth. When he told us upon Dylan Samberg’s return to the lineup that he was moving away from Ville Heinola with Dylan Coghlan (who had played well against Nashville on Jan. 7) to play Stanley with Coghlan instead, he was asked for his rationale.
“I want a lefty–righty tomorrow,” Arniel said. “I’m not married to that, but I do want it tomorrow against LA.”
The implication in that moment was that Heinola-Coghlan was not an option, despite it also being a lefty-righty pairing. Stanley was the go-to defenceman in that scenario and Arniel seemed only to be considering whether his partner would be Heinola, the lefty, or Coghlan, the righty.
Fast forward to Colorado on Wednesday. I referenced Arniel’s past preference for lefty-righty pairings when asking what went into the decision to play Stanley on his off-hand side.
“A little bit because he did it last year for us, playing with (Nate Schmidt) and playing with Sammy. (Haydn) Fleury’s never played over there and I wanted to get Fleury in the lineup here … Stan does feel comfortable over there and I hope to see that one-timer come. I remember last year, a few times, Sammy fed him lots and he got that shot off.”
Sometimes, the coach wants a lefty-righty. Sometimes he wants Stanley based on specific memories of him playing a small number of games on his off-hand side. Those statements contradict each other a little bit, but not completely — and while I can find evidence of Stanley on the right side with Samberg, all of my lineup cards have Schmidt taking the offhand-side duties.
The bottom line in all of this is that Arniel wants Stanley in the lineup. I think fans would be more satisfied if he simply said so. “We see Stanley’s defensive struggles but we believe in his potential,” he could say. “We’re hoping he can reach that potential and we like his size so we’re going to give him a long runway.”
My read is that Stanley is a must-play option for this coaching staff because they want more size and less action on Adam Lowry’s fight card. If I’m right about that, then Arniel, Cheveldayoff and everyone involved would do a better job of quelling your concerns if they said as much.
I think Stanley gets the opportunity that he does because of his size, the fact that he does fight from time to time, and the fact that few other Jets offer that element. I don’t view him as one of Winnipeg’s best six options on defence, but acknowledge that he’s plus-6 at five-on-five and his struggles have not kept the Jets out of first place in the West.
Do you think there is any merit in the Jets’ big-swing opportunities such as Mathew Barzal or Elias Pettersson? If the Jets are truly in “win now” mode, do you think a trade of that level would be the best way to accomplish that? — Levi L.
I think there is merit to taking big swings. Winnipeg has to make its moves knowing it’s not a major player in free agency, so I respect your asks for Barzal and Pettersson, each of whom has several years left on their contracts beyond this one.
I don’t know that those specific players will be moved. In Pettersson’s case, it seems likely that J.T. Miller is moved instead. In Barzal’s, I could imagine pending UFA Brock Nelson being the player who gets dealt. The concept of going big in search of the right player — Nelson? Ryan O’Reilly? Jonathan Toews and then a more expensive defenceman? — speaks to me. It may also be that Winnipeg believes strongly enough in Mark Scheifele, Adam Lowry and Vladislav Namestnikov to seek upgrades at wing instead. The key is sandpaper, skill and an effective use of both to give the Jets’ secondary scoring line a better chance to hold its own at both ends of the rink. We’ll get deeper into the possibilities as the trade deadline approaches.
GO DEEPER
Jets’ trade deadline plans, interest in Jonathan Toews: 5 takeaways from GM Kevin Cheveldayoff
Is there any chance we see Elias Salomonsson in a Jets jersey before year end? — Paul M.
I’m here to tell you there’s a chance, but it’s important to keep expectations in check.
Salomonsson has only just returned to Moose practice, wearing a yellow non-contact jersey after sustaining an upper-body injury against Belleville in December. Moose coach Mark Morrison told reporters on Tuesday that Salomonsson could get back into game action during Manitoba’s road trip next week, but isn’t expected to play against Grand Rapids on Saturday.
The Moose need him: Salomonsson has played 17 games, most of the team has played over 30, and the defenceman is still sixth in team scoring.
Here’s the hit that interrupted his stellar AHL debut season.
This didn’t look good as Jets prospect Elias Salomonsson left down the tunnel after taking this big hit into the boards.
Didn’t look good.
He’s currently tied for the Moose scoring lead with 12 points (3G 9A) in 17 games. #NHLJets #MBMoose pic.twitter.com/cNvkyOsa6p
— Dave Minuk (@ICdave) December 7, 2024
In a perfect world, the 20-year-old Salomonsson would make a smooth and efficient return to his minute-eating, play-driving AHL excellence. A strong second half from Salomonsson wouldn’t erase all of Manitoba’s trouble but it would be a bright spot during an otherwise arduous season on the farm. The team is 30th in AHL points percentage and 32nd in goals scored. Its veterans haven’t dominated, while young stars Brad Lambert and Nikita Chibrikov are scoring at just over half a point per game, and now Chibrikov is hurt. Morrison told reporters on Tuesday that he’s out long-term with a lower-body injury.
Combine Salomonsson’s return from his own injury with Manitoba’s struggles, then glance up at the Jets defence where Haydn Fleury and Ville Heinola are having a tough time getting into games, and it’s clear a long-term call-up with meaningful NHL playing time is out of the question. Sign me up for a one-game NHL reward, though, if Salomonsson’s return goes well — and if Winnipeg has a great playoff seed locked up heading into its April 16 regular-season finale against Anaheim at home. It would be similar to what Chibrikov and Brad Lambert received last season and I think it meant the world to them.
Blake Wheeler was not in the congratulations video for Connor Hellebuyck. Are there hard feelings between Wheeler and the organization/ former teammates? — Kevin M.
Wheeler’s tenure with the Jets did include conflict with younger players and it’s clear from the Unbreakable podcast that he didn’t always view his leadership in the same way that his teammates did. I think using Wheeler’s absence in the video as a sign of hard feelings is a bit of a reach, though.
I poked around about it all the same.
I was told that Winnipeg’s production team checked in with Hellebuyck about his wish list and then reached out to those people. Hellebuyck asked for fishing buddy Dustin Byfuglien, longtime tandem partner Laurent Brossoit and fellow Michigander Andrew Copp; he didn’t ask for Wheeler. It may be that Wheeler is not in Hellebuyck’s innermost circle but I wouldn’t think of this as a smoking gun with respect to Hellebuyckian hard feelings.
Here’s the full ceremony, via the Jets’ YouTube account. The part you’re referencing starts at approximately 2:47.
To your knowledge, has Kieron Walton’s play caught the attention of the Jets management and development team the way Kevin He’s hot start did? Conversely, are you aware of any concern within the organization about Colby Barlow’s uneven post-draft play? — Zac H.
As I understand it, the Jets are happy with many of their prospects this season. They are particularly thrilled with two that you named in your preamble.
Walton is a 6-foot-6, 18-year-old forward with arguably the best post-draft improvement in junior hockey. The 2024 draft saw 186 players taken before him; now he’s tied for third in OHL scoring with 70 points in 42 games and has a 20-point lead on teammate Kocha Delic for first place on the Sudbury Wolves. Walton can take faceoffs and Cheveldayoff told me on Tuesday that centre is an option for Walton, who has been playing left wing. He’s also a power-play force, with 11 goals and 21 assists for an OHL-leading 32 power play points. Based on his size, the assumption might be that Walton is scoring his power-play goals from the net-front, but he sets up mostly on his off-wing where he can blast one-timers from the circle. What more could you want from a sixth-round pick?
It takes only a short scroll down the OHL leaderboard to find He and his 26 goals and 29 assists ranked 16th in points. The Jets’ fourth-round pick in 2024 is also exceeding expectations, bulldozing his way to danger areas while playing a tremendous role in Niagara’s franchise turnaround. He’s the IceDogs captain and has embraced that role, impressing his head coach with his community involvement as much as with his play on the ice. He’s production has cooled of late, falling from 1.5 to 1.3 points per game since December, but he remains second in team scoring.
The disappointment is needing to scroll down to 44th to find 2023 first-round pick Colby Barlow.
Most top prospects produce far better than a point per game in their 19-year-old OHL season, but Barlow turns 20 on Valentine’s Day and his 39 points in 41 games underwhelm compared to his scoring ability, draft slot and previous levels of production. He’s still an elite finisher with an NHL-ready shot, but I’d expect him to find more opportunities to carve the OHL apart at his age.
The good news is Barlow is heating up with four goals and seven assists for 11 points over the course of a seven-game point streak. If this is the rate he maintains down the stretch — and if he can help his Eastern Conference-leading Generals with meaningful playoff production — his slow first half could soon fade from memory. In the meantime, there are valid concerns that Barlow doesn’t have a lot of depth or breadth to his game outside of his world-class shot. He doesn’t play with a ton of pace, limiting his forechecking and backchecking ability, nor is he a great defender at the OHL level.
If Barlow’s shot is going to be his defining ability, he’s going to need to find more opportunities to use it. Otherwise, he’ll need to add more layers to his game to help him make an effective pro transition when his OHL career comes to an end.
(Top photo of Logan Stanley: Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
