Connor Hellebuyck unlikely to rejoin the Jets as trade remains the focus, says Darren Dreger

Connor Hellebuyck isn't walking back into the Winnipeg Jets crease. Darren Dreger says the only focus now is a trade.

Dreger delivered that read Thursday night, and he didn't hedge. The priority is moving the goaltender and landing Winnipeg a fair return.

He went further, too, saying he doesn't expect to see Hellebuyck back with the Jets at all.

So forget the reunion talk. This lands squarely on Kevin Cheveldayoff, the GM who has run the show in Winnipeg since 2011.

And the price tag matters. The netminder carries an $8,500,000 cap hit, behind only Igor Shesterkin and Andrei Vasilevskiy on the goalie list.

That's a lot of money for a buyer to swallow in October. Fewer teams can fit it, and fewer bidders rarely means a better haul.

Here's the strange part. Winnipeg's goaltending stats this season belong to two other names, and the Jets still sit 4-1-1 with 9 points.

Stuart Skinner carries the Jets crease into trade season

Stuart Skinner has been the steadier half of that tandem. He owns 3 wins and a .917 save percentage.

Clay Stevenson has been shakier, sitting at .872. That's the kind of number that keeps a goalie coach up past midnight.

Trading a goaltender of that caliber while you're winning is like selling your snow tires in October. Smart math, maybe, until January shows up.

The skaters are pulling their weight. Kyle Connor already has 7 goals, with 3 of them coming on the power play.

Cole Perfetti has chipped in 8 points. Mark Scheifele has 6 points over his last five games, mostly by setting the table.

But the margins are thin. Winnipeg owns a +1 goal differential, and a 1-5 home loss to Anaheim showed how fast a night can unravel.

The blue line isn't making the math easier. Josh Morrissey is dealing with a wrist injury and is expected out until at least October 22.

So who exactly is supposed to stabilize this group if the goaltending dips? That's the question Scott Arniel will be asked on every road trip.

Here's my problem with the whole thing. A fair return for an elite goalie almost never looks fair a year later, and Winnipeg is the team taking that risk.

And the schedule doesn't wait. Carolina comes to Winnipeg on Saturday riding a six-game win streak.

Every week this drags on, the market gets another vote. Somebody is going to call Cheveldayoff with a number, and nobody in that locker room knows whose it'll be.

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