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Winnipeg Jets at Edmonton Oilers

Sat Sep 196:00 PM MTEdmonton, AB
By JR·2 min read
Winnipeg JetsWPG
Edmonton OilersEDM
2—5
FINAL
Final1P2P3PT
WPG
1012
EDM
2215

TLDR: Rogers Place hosts a preseason tune-up Saturday, but the biggest story in the building might be the goalie who isn't there.

Winnipeg's trip to Edmonton on Saturday, September 19 is an exhibition game in the truest sense — both clubs are still sorting 50-plus-man camp rosters down to something that fits on an NHL bench by the end of the month. But nobody's calling this one meaningless in Winnipeg, because the Jets' franchise goaltender isn't in the building.

Connor Hellebuyck was suspended by the Jets after failing to report to training camp this week, the fallout from a trade request his agent confirmed in a statement back on August 27. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff didn't soften it either, telling reporters "a contract is a contract in the NHL" and shooting down any talk of a side agreement — Hellebuyck still has five years left on his deal. Whoever starts in net for Winnipeg on Saturday, it won't be their All-Star.

The Jets' health picture beyond the crease isn't clean either. Garrett Brown's lower-body issue now looks longer than first expected, Elias Salomonsson is out until around the end of October with a shoulder injury, and Walker Duehr is at least skating through a lower-body niggle. It's a lot of moving parts for a team also trying to figure out its net.

Winnipeg Jets
(4)
  • Day-To-DayWalker Duehr (RW) — Duehr is dealing with a lower-body injury, but he is skating, per Mitchell Clinton of the Jets' official site on Thursday.09/17
  • OutGarrett Brown (C) — Brown (lower body) was initially expected to be out long term, but he'll now be reevaluated in a couple of weeks, Mitchell Clinton of the Jets' official site reports Thursday.09/17
  • OutElias Salomonsson (D) — Head coach Scott Arniel said Thursday that Salomonsson (shoulder) is targeting the end of October for a return date, Mitchell Clinton of the Jets' official site reports.09/17
  • SuspensionConnor Hellebuyck (G)09/17
Edmonton Oilers
(2)
  • OutAlec Regula (D) — Regula (undisclosed) is expected to skate during training camp but won't participate in any preseason games, Jason Gregor of Sports 1440 Edmonton reports Wednesday.09/16
  • OutMattias Janmark (C) — Janmark (undisclosed) will skate during training camp but won't appear in preseason games, Jason Gregor of Sports 1440 Edmonton reports.09/16

Edmonton's camp is in better shape, relatively speaking — Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Evan Bouchard and Mattias Ekholm are all in the building for the Oilers' 56-man camp. The only two absences of note are Alec Regula and Mattias Janmark, and both are minor enough that they're skating through camp — they're just being held out of every preseason game, Saturday's included, as a precaution.

Neither team's last-5 numbers mean much walking into this one — they're leftovers from how last season wrapped up, not a read on where either roster stands now. Winnipeg closed out dropping 4 straight, including a pair of blowout losses, while Edmonton went 1-4 in a stretch against Anaheim that ate up its final five. Saturday's real value for both benches is bodies getting minutes and jobs getting decided, not a scoreboard anyone will remember by October.

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