Updated

Updated · The New York Times · Aug 26

Connor Hellebuyck Faces 5-Year $8.5 Million-AAV Gamble as Jets Weigh Trade After .895 Season

Updated

Updated · The New York Times · Aug 26

Connor Hellebuyck Faces 5-Year $8.5 Million-AAV Gamble as Jets Weigh Trade After .895 Season

Q: Can a 33-year-old goalie fresh off knee surgery truly guarantee a Stanley Cup for the team that acquires him?

No. A team acquiring Connor Hellebuyck would be buying a chance at elite goaltending, not a Stanley Cup guarantee. The case for optimism is strong. Hellebuyck is 33, a three-time Vezina winner and 2025 Hart Trophy winner, with a career .916 save percentage and 345 wins. He also looked elite at the 2026 Milan Olympics, backstopping the United States to gold. His style relies more on positioning, anticipation and economy of movement than frantic athleticism, which can help older goalies age better. Other top goalies such as Patrick Roy, Martin Brodeur, Dominik Hasek, Marc-Andre Fleury and Sergei Bobrovsky remained high-end performers deep into their 30s. But the warning signs are real. Last season he posted a career-worst .895 save percentage after missing about a month for knee surgery, and he was not dominant in the 43 NHL games after returning. At his age, history says most goalies are at or past the point where decline often begins. Even if his downturn was mostly injury-related, there is no certainty a full recovery restores him to his absolute peak. There is also the playoff question. Hellebuyck’s postseason record is far less convincing than his regular-season résumé, and goaltending alone rarely wins a Cup without a deep, healthy roster in front of it. Any acquiring team would be making a rational bet that he can still be a difference-maker, especially with a full offseason to recover. It just would not be a guarantee of anything beyond improved odds.

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 26

Connor Hellebuyck, 33, still appears open to a move even with training camp nearing, leaving Winnipeg and potential buyers to judge whether last season’s dip was temporary or the start of decline.
A .895 save percentage, a month-long absence for minor knee surgery and a drop to 13th in goals saved above expected drove that uncertainty after he had led the league in the metric the previous two seasons.
The post-surgery stretch sharpened concerns: Hellebuyck returned only 21 days after the procedure, then started 16 of the next 18 games as the Jets tried to recover from a 3-8-1 skid without him.
History cuts both ways for the 2025 Hart winner and three-time Vezina winner—goalies often decline after 31, but elite outliers such as Patrick Roy, Martin Brodeur and Dominik Hasek stayed dominant well past 33.
Winnipeg’s signing of Stuart Skinner gives the club time on Hellebuyck’s five remaining years at an $8.5 million cap hit, with outcomes ranging from a return to a preseason holdout or a later blockbuster.