Jets GM makes it sound like Byfuglien is done with hockey
Now that Dustin Byfuglien's contract with the Winnipeg Jets has been officially terminated, the 35-year-old blueliner is free to sign anywhere he wants. But there's been no word from Byfuglien himself on what his plans for the future are and Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff certainly makes it sound like "Big Buff" is done with hockey.
Following word of the contract termination Friday, Cheveldayoff took the time to speak with members of the media via conference call where he spoke publicly for the first time about the steps that led to Winnipeg and Byfuglien severing ties. He started with a conversation that took place back in September of 2019, the night before training camp began.
"At that time he informed me that he didn't know if he had it in him to continue playing in the NHL. It was a very emotional time," Cheveldayoff said. "It's something that is still a private matter and it will stay private. It was emotional. It was tough on him to even come and talk to me."
Shortly after, Byfuglien was suspended for failing to show up at training camp. According to Cheveldayoff, he informed the team in October that he'd like to return but wanted to undergo surgery on his ankle first. The procedure was done October 23rd and Byfuglien started rehab a little while later. However, in January, Cheveldayoff said Byfuglien contacted him and told him he didn't want to play any longer.
"At the end of the day, everybody has a choice," Cheveldayoff said. "Dustin's choice was to be true to himself and not put himself, and maybe the team and everybody, in a difficult situation. He didn't have it in him to continue to play. That's the most honest thing he could say."
Something that was not addressed during the call was whether Byfuglien was done playing hockey altogether or simply done playing hockey for the Jets. Cheveldayoff's wording makes it sound as though Byfuglien was done with the sport entirely. Whatever the case, Cheveldayoff does not hold any ill-will towards Byfuglien.
"To me, the legacy is always going to be him grabbing two people out of a pile and throwing them around," Cheveldayoff said. "To me, the legacy is always going to be the hit at centre ice on (Mark) Stone from Ottawa. To me, the legacy is going to be the slap shot from the point to blast it by a goaltender.
"If we choose to focus on other things - that's everyone's choice. We live in a time right now that we all understand that things do happen that are unexpected. It's how we choose to move on. Dustin still remains, in my estimation, a tremendous person.
As an interesting side note, should Byfuglien choose to retire completely, there would be just eight active NHLers left who were once members of the now defunct Atlanta Thrashers. They are Blake Wheeler, Bryan Little, Andrew Ladd, Ilya Kovalchuk, Evander Kane, Ron Hainsey, Zach Bogosian and Braydon Coburn.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 18 | 348 ANSWERS Jets GM makes it sound like Byfuglien is done with hockey Do you think Byfuglien will play in the NHL again? | ||
| Yes | 162 | 46.6 % |
| No | 186 | 53.4 % |
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YESTERDAY
MAY 20, 2026
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| G | A | PTS | ||
| Dylan Coghlan | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Pavel Dorofeyev | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Nic Dowd | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Gabriel Landeskog | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Valeri Nichushkin | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Rasmus Andersson | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ross Colton | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Eichel | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Tomas Hertl | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Ben Hutton | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nathan MacKinnon | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Mitch Marner | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Brandon Saad | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Colton Sissons | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Devon Toews | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Jack Ahcan | - | - | - | |
| Ivan Barbashev | - | - | - | |
| Brent Burns | - | - | - | |
| Jack Drury | - | - | - | |
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