Winnipeg Jets Suspend Connor Hellebuyck For Failing To Report To Training Camp

Hot damn! Connor went completely rogue!

The Winnipeg Jets made the move Wednesday night to suspend star goalie Connor Hellebuyck after he failed to report to training camp.

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With camp getting underway Thursday in Winnipeg, the organization offered no timeline on how long the goalie will be suspended. Jets General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff is slated to take questions from the media Thursday morning, according to the team. (RELATED: Ohio State Football ‘To Make Some Hard Decisions’ After Embarrassing Collapse Against Texas)

The suspension from the Jets is just the newest chapter in a messy saga driven by Hellebuyck’s urge to get shipped out of the city that drafted him back in 2012.

The writing has been on the wall since late Aug., when Hellebuyck’s agent, Ray Petkau, dropped a trade demand on behalf of the reigning MVP and three-time Vezina winner. According to Hellebuyck, per ESPN, he “tried to handle the situation quietly and respectfully while giving the organization time to explore its options.”

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Hellebuyck said that he wanted to handle things “quietly and respectfully,” but from the looks of it, the Jets dragged their feet. And now the gloves are off.

Skipping camp and eating a team suspension is the nuclear option, but in today’s NHL, it’s the only real leverage a superstar has when a front office refuses to read the room. And with how this whole situation just escalated even further, every GM with cap space has got to be smelling blood in the water.

And that’s the leverage, which makes me question why Winnipeg made this move in the first place.

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