Winnipeg Jets’ 3 Best Contracts for 2025-26

His wizardry around the net and his puck-handling ability in tight — Adam Lowry said last season Vilardi can stickhandle in a phone booth — make him a huge threat as a “facilitator” from the net-front position and his presence there was key to the team’s league-best 28.90 power-play efficiency last season. He finished with a team-high 12 power-play goals and also had 13 power-play assists.

The mid 20s through early 30s are most players’ prime years, and the Jets will hope he continues to blossom and establishes himself as a perennial point-per-game guy and first-liner through the rest of their current competitive window.

2: Josh Morrissey: 3 Years Remaining on 8-Year Deal, $6.25 Million AAV

This deal, now entering year five of eight, was decent when Morrissey inked it back in 2019 but has since become spectacular.

To have a perennial top-10 Norris Trophy finisher and elite offensive defenseman for less than seven per cent of the salary cap is something every team would kill for, and that’s exactly what the Jets have in their pact with Morrissey.

The now 30 year old is the undisputed leader of the Jets’ defensive core and has comprised half of one of league’s best top pairings alongside Dylan DeMelo for a number of seasons now. The left shooter is coming off a campaign where he put up 62 points (14 goals, 48 assists) in 80 games while averaging a career-high 24:23 in ice time, and since now-retired head coach Rick Bowness encouraged him to jump up in the play and produce more offense ahead of the 2022-23 season, he has racked up 207 points (40 goals, 167 assists.)

It’s obvious from watching Morrissey play that he operates at an exceptionally high level on both sides of the puck and that he’s worth every dollar he makes and more. In addition to his ability to quickly kill a play and transition to offence, he is a tremendous skater, great puck handler, and posts above-average possession metrics. Many teams are paying many millions more for players with similar skillsets and production (such as Evan Bouchard, Adam Fox, and Mikhail Sergachev.)

1: Connor Hellebuyck: 6 Years Remaining on 7-Year Deal, $8.5 Million AAV

He’s a three-time and defending back-to-back Vezina Trophy winner, defending back-to-back William M. Jennings Trophy winner, defending Hart Trophy winner (and first goalie to snag it in a decade), but only the fifth-highest-paid goaltender in the league.

While Hellebuyck’s last three playoff performances have left much to be desired — and his penchant for wilting in the postseason is something we’ve spilled much virtual ink over here at THW — his accolades and overall body of work are more than enough to make his deal the Jets’ best. Last season, he reached a new level of dominance and played a key role in helping the Jets capture the franchise’s first Presidents’ Trophy, posting a 47-12-3 record, 2.00 goals against average, .925 save percentage, eight shutouts, and 41.6 goals saved above expected.

A longtime workhorse, Hellebuyck has racked up 322 wins in 558-career starts for a 57.7 win rate and has posted a quality start 60 per cent of the time. He has stolen countless games for the team since making his NHL debut in 2015-16, especially in seasons past where the Jets’ defensive personnel and commitment were much sketchier than they are now.

Even though after the disappointing 2022-23 season it seemed like there was no chance of him signing an extension after his contract expired in 2024, he instead chose to ink a seven-year extension so he could keep chasing what matters most to him: a Stanley Cup. The fact he could have gotten much more on the open market, potentially $10-plus million per year, but instead chose to stay in Winnipeg and be a likely Jet for life is a testament to where his priorities lie.

While this deal may age badly toward the end and the final year or two may need to be bought out if Hellebuyck really drops off in his mid-to-late 30s, it’s a steal right now.

Honourable Mentions:

• Adam Lowry: 1 year remaining, $3.25 million AAV — Lowry does everything a captain should do and much more at a very reasonable price. His is a true leader of men and someone the organization doesn’t have to worry about leaving as an unrestricted free agent (UFA.)
• Kyle Connor: 1 year remaining, $7.124 million AAV – A reasonable price for a sniper who has put up 30-plus goals in seven of the past eight seasons and is an underrated playmaker to boot. It doesn’t make the top three because it now comes with the anxiety that Connor will be a UFA next July 1 if a new deal isn’t reached before then.
• Dylan Samberg: 3 years remaining, $5.75 million AAV – The sub-$6 million figure for a player who has blossomed into a bona fide top-four defensive defenseman will look even better when the salary cap rises drastically by the end of the deal. It doesn’t make our top three because the term isn’t very long.