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Winnipeg journalist (The Athletic) sees Nikolaj Ehlers being traded this summer
Terrence Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Jets lost in the first round to the Colorado Avalanche.

The Winnipeg outfit had started the series well, winning the first game…

But the Avalanche went on to win the next four games.

The result was disappointing there, because expectations were so high.

After all, Kevin Cheveldayoff acquired Sean Monahan AND Tyler Toffoli to help his club go all the way… Two guys who could leave this summer via the free agent market.

So we’re expecting some changes in Winnipeg this summer because the Jets’ current formula isn’t working.

Murat Ates, who covers the team in Winnipeg for The Athletic, opens the door in a text for Nikolaj Ehlers to change address…

Because Cheveldayoff would like to improve his defensive brigade, and because the Dane has a nice value on the market:

Nikolaj Ehlers is young at 28 and is coming off one of the best offensive seasons of his career.

He finished last season with 61 points in 82 games…

And to have seen him play so much this season is great news in itself, because he’s had to miss several games in recent seasons due to injury.

That said, Ehlers is the perfect player for a team looking to add punch to its top-6 attack.

We’re talking about an excellent skater, a player with great vision and a guy who can score goals.

He’s really an offensive player, basically… But he also has great defensive qualities, because he’s used on the short-handed side with the Jets:

(Credit: Hockey DB)

Of course, we know that Kent Hughes wants to add natural talent to his line-up, and it may be logical to believe that Ehlers fits that bill.

Especially when the Jets want a defenseman… and the Habs have a surplus on the blue line.

But Ehlers is 28 years old, and therein lies the problem.

Above all, Hughes wants to get his hands on a player who fits into the rebuilding timeline, and Ehlers is already mortgaged to injuries.

He has one year left on his contract ($6 million)… And it should be noted that Ehlers can submit to the Jets a list of 10 teams to which he would refuse to be traded.

His file will be one to watch, but I find it hard to believe that there will be much talk about it in Montreal.

In gusto

– To be continued…

– Well done.

– Promising.

– Makes sense.

This article first appeared on Dose.ca and was syndicated with permission.

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