Winnipeg Jets sign former top-10 pick to two-year deal

The Winnipeg Jets have reportedly signed restricted free agent forward Cole Perfetti to a two-year bridge deal (as per TSN’s Darren Dreger). The deal comes with a $3.2M AAV and will see the 22-year-old receive $3M in the first year and $3.5M in year two. The former 10th overall pick in 2020 will be a restricted free agent once again in 2026 and will require a qualifying offer of $3.5M for Winnipeg to retain his rights.

The question entering this summer was whether Winnipeg and Perfetti could reach a long-term deal or whether both sides would opt to go short-term. The two-year deal makes sense given that the Jets likely want to see more from the Whitby, Ontario native, and Perfetti likely feels as though he has another gear to find.

Perfetti was good last season for the Jets posting 19 goals and 19 assists in 71 games but struggled in the second half of the season after a solid start. His offensive numbers represented a career-high in his brief three-year NHL career, but he could just be scratching the surface. Perfetti only averaged 13:35 of ice time per game last season and could see a big offensive bump if he gets consistent top-six minutes this year.

Perfetti will look to find consistency next season after an unbalanced 2023-24 in which he was healthy scratched 11 times and played just 10:56 total in the playoffs. He remains a gifted playmaker with incredible hockey sense, but his skating has been an issue through much of his professional career. Perfetti isn’t the fastest player on the ice, which can limit his ability to create open space for himself, particularly when the puck is on his stick.