Jets put Brad Lambert on waivers during 9-game skid

The news broke Tuesday afternoon, a few hours before Winnipeg took the ice in Montreal still looking for its first win in nearly 3 weeks.

Darren Dreger

@DarrenDreger

The Winnipeg Jets put Brad Lambert on waivers to make room for a call up option from the Manitoba Moose.

It's a tough end to a long runway. Winnipeg took Lambert 30th overall in 2022, and he had looked like the fix for a team that has always needed more speed and skill down the middle. He had a monster AHL season in 2023-24 with 21 goals and 55 points in 64 games for the Moose. The NHL version never showed up the same way: 3 goals and 9 points across 42 career games, and just 1 assist in 11 games this season. He's 22, and now the other 31 teams get a free look before Winnipeg can send him down to Manitoba.

Anyone watching closely saw this one coming. On this road trip the Jets chose to dress a defenceman at forward over Lambert, and the beat noticed.

Mike McIntyre

@mikemcintyrewpg

The #NHLJets have put Brad Lambert on waivers. Writing was on the wall when the team elected to use defenceman Tyrel Bauer at forward instead of him on this road trip. We’ll see who gets called up Wednesday and if other moves could be made as well.

When your coach would rather play Tyrel Bauer, a D-man, as a forward than play your former first-rounder, the message is pretty clear. Lambert sitting there was also a symptom of a bigger problem. Winnipeg came into Tuesday at 4-8-3 with no win in 9 games, and the last game of that run was a 7-0 beating in Carolina on Sunday. A roster that isn't working gets reshuffled, and the guy with no points who can still be sent down without much fuss is usually the first one moved.

The real squeeze is still coming. Josh Morrissey hasn't played since hurting his wrist against Colorado on Oct. 7, and Scott Arniel says the top defenceman could be back as soon as Sunday against Tampa Bay. That means another roster spot has to open up, and on top of that the Jets are still carrying 3 goalies.

Mike McIntyre

@mikemcintyrewpg

The #NHLJets will also need a roster spot for Josh Morrissey, who could be ready to play by Sunday. And they still have the three goalie issue here to solve.

Arniel didn't give away much before puck drop in Montreal either. He wouldn't name a starter, wouldn't say what the lines were and wouldn't say whether they'd go with 11 forwards and 7 D again. The one thing he did confirm was that Dawson Mercer, who took Monday's practice off, was going in.

Mike McIntyre

@mikemcintyrewpg

#NHLJets coach Scott Arniel wouldn’t name starting goalie beyond saying he has 3. But he then says not Daws. I assume/believe it’s Skinner. Mercer is IN. Arniel won’t say who he plays with. Or which forward (s) out. Or if they go 11/7 again.

So Lambert is basically the first move in a roster shuffle, not the whole thing. The call-up gets announced Wednesday, Morrissey's return forces another decision by the weekend, and at some point one of those 3 goalies has to go. If Lambert clears, he's back with the Moose, where he has already shown he can produce. If somebody claims him, the Jets lose a first-rounder for nothing in the middle of a 9-game slide, and that's a lot harder to explain.