In anticipation of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, I have prepared two posts that evaluate the cumulative draft and develop progress of the Winnipeg Jets.
Drafting is the single best way for a sports franchise to build success so its not surprising that Winnipeg Jets Management has made draft and develop its central strategy. This post (and the one that follows it) will break down how the Jets have done with their 2011, 2012, and 2013 draft picks up to the end of 2013-14 season (which is why this evaluation goes from 2011 to 2014).
I have created a table that tracks each draft prospect taken by the Jets according to a very simple, transparent statistic called ProGames (ProGms).
ProGames counts the number of NHL and AHL games that a drafted player accumulates for their new team. NHL games played count as 1.0 ProGms while AHL games played count as 0.5 ProGms, and these are accumulated across both Regular Season and Playoff Games. So a drafted player who plays 20 NHL and 10 AHL games for his new team will accumulate 25 ProGms for his team.
While the goal of the draft is to have each draftee become an NHL player that plays for the Winnipeg Jets, this is neither guaranteed or realistic. I believe that having players that play for the Jets’ AHL club is a demonstration of player development. Playing for a farm team creates internal pressure and competition that is a hallmark of the best teams.
Note that not all of the players are Draftees. Between 2011 and 2013 the Jets did sign two Undrafted Free Agents which I believe is important to capture since it still demonstrates the choosing and development of talent.
| 2013 Entry Draft | ||||||||
| Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2013-14 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | Exit |
| #13 in Round 1 | Josh Morrissey | D | Prince Albert Raiders [WHL] | Major-Junior/Pro | 0 | 28 | 14.0 | — |
| #43 in Round 2 | Nicolas Petan | C | Portland Winterhawks [WHL] | Major-Junior | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
| #59 in Round 2 | Eric Comrie | G | Tri-City Americans [WHL] | Major-Junior | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
| #84 in Round 3 | Jimmy Lodge | C | Saginaw Spirit [OHL] | Major-Junior | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
| #91 in Round 3 | J.C. Lipon | R | Kamloops Blazers [WHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 86 | 43.0 | — |
| #104 in Round 4 | Andrew Copp | C | U. of Michigan [CCHA] | College | Right still held | — | ||
| #114 in Round 4 | Jan Kostalek | D | Rimouski Oceanic [QMJHL] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
| #127 in Round 5 | Tucker Poolman | D | Omaha Lancers [USHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
| #190 in Round 7 | Brenden Kichton | D | Spokane Chiefs [WHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 97 | 48.5 | — |
| #194 in Round 7 | Marcus Karlstrom | D | AIK Jrs. (Sweden) | Europe Pro | Right still held | — | ||
| Free Agent | Juho Olkinuora | G | U. of Denver [WCHA] | AHL-ECHL Pro | 0 | 11 | 5.5 | — |
| Free Agent | Axel Blomqvist | F | Victoria [WHL] | Major-Junior | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
| 10 Drafted + 2 Undrafted Free Agents = 3 AHL, 5 Pro, 4 Rights | ProGms | 111.0 | 0/12 | |||||
| 2012 Entry Draft | ||||||||
| Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2013-14 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | |
| #9 in Round 1 | Jacob Trouba | D | U.S. National Development Team [USHL] | NHL Pro | 65 | 0 | 65.0 | — |
| #39 in Round 2 | Lukas Sutter | C | Saskatoon Blades [WHL] | Unsigned | Re-drafted by another NHL team | X | ||
| #70 in Round 3 | Scott Kosmachuk | R | Guelph Storm [OHL] | AHL Pro | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
| #130 in Round 5 | Connor Hellebuyck | G | Odessa Jackalopes [NAHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 2 | 1.0 | — |
| #160 in Round 6 | Ryan Olsen | C | Saskatoon Blades [WHL] | AHL Pro | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
| #190 in Round 7 | Jamie Phillips | G | Toronto Jr. Canadiens [OJHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
| 6 Drafted = 1 NHL, 3 Pro, 1 Rights, 1 Lost | ProGms | 65.0 | 1/6 | |||||
| 2011 Entry Draft | ||||||||
| Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2013-14 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | |
| #7 in Round 1 | Mark Scheifele | C | Barrie Colts [OHL] | NHL Pro | 74 | 10 | 79.0 | — |
| #67 in Round 3 | Adam Lowry | L | Swift Current Broncos [WHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 90 | 45.0 | — |
| #78 in Round 3 | Brennan Serville | D | Stouffville Spirit [OJHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
| #119 in Round 4 | Zach Yuen | D | Tri-City Americans [WHL] | Unsigned | Re-drafted by another NHL team | X | ||
| #149 in Round 5 | Austen Brassard | R | Belleville Bulls [OHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 29 | 14.5 | — |
| #157 in Round 6 | Jason Kasdorf | G | Portage Terriers [MJHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
| #187 in Round 7 | Aaron Harstad | D | Green Bay Gamblers [USHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
| 7 drafted = 1 NHL, 2 AHL, 3 Rights, 1 Lost | ProGms | 138.5 | 1/7 | |||||
| 23 Drafted + 2 Undrafted Free Agents = 2 NHL, 5 AHL, 8 Pro, 8 Rights, 2 Lost | ProGms | 314.5 | 2/25 | |||||
So after three drafts the Winnipeg Jets had accumulated 314.5 ProGms with 23 prospects. Two prospects were never signed so were redrafted by another team. It will be intriguing to follow and track how the Jets strategy of draft and develop supports their on-ice success.
