The Winnipeg Jets shocked many with their identical signings of Mark Scheifele and Connor Hellebuyck this past weekend. Adam Lowry and Josh Morrissey respond to big news.
Monday afternoon's signing of forward Mark Scheifele and goaltender Connor Hellebuyck couldn't have come at a better time for the Winnipeg Jets.
Sure, being early October, the focus is on the start of the 2023-24 season. But to be able to get the headache of expiring contracts out of the way before the puck is even dropped?
That is sensational news for general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and his management team, not to mention a great way of alleviating uncertainty within the organization, the dressing room and fan base.
What uncertainty, you ask? Well, for starters, considering both Hellebuyck and Scheifele were on expiring deals and would have had the opportunity to explore free agency come July 1, 2024, locking the two players down on seven-year, $59.5 million extensions through 2030-31 is an extraordinary feat.
No, it may not have been the annual average value that the team would have liked to be paying either player come the end of their extensions, but the term is certainly something rare in Winnipeg.
Not a popular free agent destination, the ability to retain star players on long-term contracts is a tough ask in chilly Manitoba. So, to have Hellebuyck and Scheifele in the polar night blue for the next eight years means a lot to the organization and its employees.
Although the two stars spoke at a podium alongside Cheveldayoff and head coach Rick Bowness following the official signing of the two contracts on Tuesday, the real excitement was felt elsewhere.
"The uniqueness of it yesterday was awesome," Cheveldayoff recalled. "Once we got the final 'yes' from them, they got the opportunity to stand in front of their team in a team meeting and say they were committing to Winnipeg. The roar that came out of the dressing room - unfortunately I wasn't in there, but I was walking by it at the time - and the roar that came out of the dressing room, I knew exactly what had happened."
With both players agreeing to matching extensions on the same date, both Hellebuyck and Scheifele, as well as the entire Jets organization, has shown a commitment to success with the group currently assembled.
"To be able to announce both together, they’ve played together for so long, I think that’s something special too," forward Adam Lowry said. "So, I think to have it done before the season, we were able to celebrate them a little bit in the room when they told us yesterday, and now we’re really looking forward to getting the season started and those two guys are going to be big driving forces for our team.”
For the team's newly-minted captain, the timing really couldn't have been any better.
"I don’t think it was going to be a distraction per se, but to get it out of the way and to know what our team is going to look like going forward is huge," Lowry said. "I think it takes some of the uncertainty out of it and like I said it couldn’t happen to two better people, two better teammates, so we’re really happy for them.”
The other member of the leadership team alongside Lowry and Scheifele is Josh Morrissey. At one point a top candidate in the Jets captaincy running and a recent signee of a contract extension himself, the 28-year-old couldn't be happier for his fellow 'lifelong' mates.
"As a guy that signed here and committed to playing in Winnipeg and wanted to be here, it certainly makes me feel good that those guys want to be here and that we have a chance to build something special in the future," Morrissey said. "Again, we’ve grown up here together, so it’s pretty cool to see them make that commitment and the organization make that commitment as well. It’s a big deal on both sides."
It certainly is a massive deal for both the players and management, as two extensions really set the tone for the near and distant future of the organization.
"I think it sends the message that this team is committed to trying to win and signed two of the top players, in their positions," Morrissey added. "I really feel that gives us a chance for a number of years going forward."
Winnipeg opens its season on the road in Calgary on Wednesday evening. The Jets and Flames face-off at 9:00 PM central time from the Scotiabank Saddledome. The game can be viewed live on Sportsnet.