Jets in Freefall: NHL Analyst Reveals Whether Winnipeg Can Win After Losing Key Players

Originally posted on Hockey Latest | By Daniel Lucente | Last updated Jul 21, 2025 12:25 PM ET

NHL analyst Jake Tye from 'The Hockey News' believes that despite losing several key players this offseason, the Jets should still be a force next season.

The Winnipeg Jets will have a new look in 2025-26 after a franchise-best 56-22-4 season and a President's Trophy win. As good as it was, the offseason was full of notable losses.

Captain Adam Lowry will likely miss most of the season due to injury, and both Nikolaj Ehlers and Mason Appleton departed in free agency.

To fill the gaps, Winnipeg brought in veteran talent, including three-time Stanley Cup champion Jonathan Toews and 75-point scorer Gustav Nyquist. Veterans Tanner Pearson and Cole Koepke were also brought in to add depth.

Perhaps the toughest to replace will be the strong third line of Adam Lowry, mason Appleton, and Nino Niederreiter. That line was defensively elite, having surrendered only 12 goals in 544 minutes of ice time together last season.

To replace it, Vladislav Namestnikov shifts to the center with Nino Niederreiter and Alex Iafallo, a potentially more offense-oriented third line.

Toews will likely be the second-line center, which will help assume some of the defensive responsibilities lost with Lowry.

The good news is the Jets' top line remains intact next season

The Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele, and Gabriel Vilardi top line remains intact and formidable.

They combined for 107 of the team's 275 goals and played more minutes together than any other three players in the NHL. With Kyle Connor seeking a new contract, expect an even more hungry performance.

Younger Manitoba Moose players from the AHL, like Nikita Chibrikov and Brad Lambert, are also vying for roster positions, which is creating competition.

Tanner Pearson and Cole Koepke will also vie with returning forwards David Gustafsson and Morgan Barron for bottom-six roles.

'Due to injuries, captain Adam Lowry looks like he won't play a majority of the 2025-26 season and middle-six forwards Nikolaj Ehlers and Maple Appleton left for new teams in free agency.
The good news is the Jets made some impactful offseason adds like signing a three-time Stanley Cup champion and Hall-of-Fame talent in Jonathan Toews plus also nabbing 75-point scorer in 2023, Gustav Nyquist. They made bottom-six adds in Tanner Pearson and Cole Koepke. Only time will tell if the moves will be a positive or a negative for the Jets as a lot will be asked of certain players and others will need to step up in the meantime.'

- Jake Tye

Deeper and with more internal competition, NHL analyst Jake Tye believes the Jets could be even more dangerous, especially if Lowry returns late in the season to further bolster the lineup.

This article first appeared on Hockey Latest and was syndicated with permission.

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