In the anticipation of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, I am updating my evaluation on 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 preceded it) will break down how the Jets have done with their 2011 to 2015 draft picks up to the end of 2015-16 season (which is why this evaluation goes from 2011 to 2016).
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 and is also critical for success. 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 2016 the Jets did sign three Undrafted Free Agents which I believe is important to capture since it still demonstrates the choosing and development of new talent.
2015 Entry Draft | ||||||||
Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2015-16 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | Exit |
#17 in Round 1 | Kyle Connor | L | Youngstown Phantoms [USHL] | College | Pro Contract signed | — | ||
#25 in Round 1 | Jack Roslovic | C | U.S. National Development Team [USHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
#47 in Round 2 | Jansen Harkins | C | Prince George Cougars [WHL] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
#78 in Round 3 | Erik Foley | L | Cedar Rapids RoughRiders [USHL] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
#108 in Round 4 | Michael Spacek | R | Pardubice HC [Czech] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
#168 in Round 6 | Mason Appleton | F | Tri-City Storm [USHL] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
#198 in Round 7 | Sami Niku | D | JYP Jrs. (Finland) | Europe Pro | Right still held | — | ||
#203 in Round 7 | Matteo Gennaro | C | Prince Albert Raiders [WHL] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
Free Agent | Brandon Tanev | L | Providence College [H-East] | NHL Pro | 3 | 0 | 3.0 | — |
8 Drafted + 1 Undrafted Free Agent – 1 NHL, 1 Pro, 7 Rights | ProGms | 3.0 | 0/9 | |||||
2014 Entry Draft | ||||||||
Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2015-16 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | Exit |
#9 in Round 1 | Nikolaj Ehlers | L | Halifax Mooseheads [QMJHL] | NHL Pro | 72 | 0 | 72.0 | — |
#69 in Round 3 | Jack Glover | D | U.S. National Under-18 Team [USHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
#99 in Round 4 | Chase De Leo | C | Portland Winterhawks [WHL] | AHL Pro | 2 | 73 | 38.5 | — |
#101 in Round 4 | Nelson Nogier | D | Saskatoon Blades [WHL] | Major-Junior | Right still held | — | ||
#129 in Round 5 | C.J. Franklin | F | Sioux Falls Stampede [USHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
#164 in Round 6 | Pavel Kraskovsky | F | Yaroslavl (Russia Jrs.) | Europe Pro | Right still held | — | ||
#192 in Round 7 | Matt Ustaski | F | Langley Rivermen [BCHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
7 Drafted – 1 NHL, 1 AHL, 5 Rights | ProGms | 110.5 | 0/7 | |||||
2013 Entry Draft | ||||||||
Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2015-16 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | Exit |
#13 in Round 1 | Josh Morrissey | D | Prince Albert Raiders [WHL] | AHL Pro | 1 | 85 | 43.5 | — |
#43 in Round 2 | Nicolas Petan | C | Portland Winterhawks [WHL] | AHL Pro | 26 | 47 | 49.5 | — |
#59 in Round 2 | Eric Comrie | G | Tri-City Americans [WHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 51 | 25.5 | — |
#84 in Round 3 | Jimmy Lodge | C | Saginaw Spirit [OHL] | AHL-ECHL Pro | 0 | 45 | 22.5 | — |
#91 in Round 3 | J.C. Lipon | R | Kamloops Blazers [WHL] | AHL Pro | 9 | 206 | 112.0 | — |
#104 in Round 4 | Andrew Copp | C | U. of Michigan [CCHA] | NHL Pro | 78 | 0 | 78.0 | — |
#114 in Round 4 | Jan Kostalek | D | Rimouski Oceanic [QMJHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 52 | 26.0 | — |
#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 | 230 | 115.0 | — |
#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 | 20 | 10.0 | — |
Free Agent | Axel Blomqvist | F | Victoria [WHL] | AHL-ECHL Pro | 0 | 33 | 16.5 | — |
10 Drafted + 2 Undrafted Free Agents – 1 NHL, 9 AHL, 2 Rights | ProGms | 498.5 | 0/12 | |||||
2012 Entry Draft | ||||||||
Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2015-16 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | Exit |
#9 in Round 1 | Jacob Trouba | D | U.S. National Development Team [USHL] | NHL Pro | 215 | 0 | 215.0 | — |
#39 in Round 2 | Lukas Sutter | C | Saskatoon Blades [WHL] | Unsigned | No longer playing | X | ||
#70 in Round 3 | Scott Kosmachuk | R | Guelph Storm [OHL] | AHL Pro | 8 | 137 | 76.5 | — |
#130 in Round 5 | Connor Hellebuyck | G | Odessa Jackalopes [NAHL] | AHL Pro | 26 | 88 | 70.0 | — |
#160 in Round 6 | Ryan Olsen | C | Saskatoon Blades [WHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 125 | 62.5 | — |
#190 in Round 7 | Jamie Phillips | G | Toronto Jr. Canadiens [OJHL] | College | Right still held | — | ||
6 Drafted – 1 NHL, 3 AHL, 1 Rights, 1 Unsigned | ProGms | 424.0 | 1/6 | |||||
2011 Entry Draft | ||||||||
Number/Round | Player | Pos | Drafted From | 2015-16 Status | NHL GP | AHL GP | ProGms | Exit |
#7 in Round 1 | Mark Scheifele | C | Barrie Colts [OHL] | NHL Pro | 231 | 10 | 236.0 | — |
#67 in Round 3 | Adam Lowry | L | Swift Current Broncos [WHL] | NHL Pro | 158 | 94 | 205.0 | — |
#78 in Round 3 | Brennan Serville | D | Stouffville Spirit [OJHL] | AHL-ECHL Pro | 0 | 15 | 7.5 | — |
#119 in Round 4 | Zach Yuen | D | Tri-City Americans [WHL] | Unsigned | Playing in ECHL | X | ||
#149 in Round 5 | Austen Brassard | R | Belleville Bulls [OHL] | AHL Pro | 0 | 183 | 91.5 | — |
#157 in Round 6 | Jason Kasdorf | G | Portage Terriers [MJHL] | Traded BUF 02/2015 | Playing in Buffalo system | X | ||
#187 in Round 7 | Aaron Harstad | D | Green Bay Gamblers [USHL] | AHL-ECHL Pro | 0 | 31 | 15.5 | — |
7 drafted – 2 NHL, 3 AHL, 1 Traded, 1 Unsigned | ProGms | 532.5 | 2/7 | |||||
38 Drafted + 3 Undrafted Free Agents – 6 NHL, 16 AHL, 1 Pro, 15 Rights, 1 Traded, 2 Unsigned | ProGms | 1568.5 | 3/41 |
So after five drafts the Winnipeg Jets have accumulated 1568.5 ProGms (up from 665.0) with 41 prospects. The 2015-16 seasons darkly contrasts with the previous year’s success. The ProGms more than doubled and the neither the Winnipeg Jets and Manitoba Moose were close to making the playoffs. It appears that they introduced too many fresh prospects into their system at the same time which resulting in an inexperienced and losing effort on both NHL and AHL clubs.