Defenseive Help On The Way With Beaulieu And Kiselevich

A busy trade deadline went down to the wire for the Winnipeg Jets, but they finally got some defensive help on the left side with a pair of deals that nabbed them pair of left handed defensemen. They acquired Nathan Beaulieu from the Buffalo Sabres for a 2020 6th round pick and then snagged Bogdan Kiselevich from the Florida Panthers for a 2021 7th rounder.

We’ll know a little more about the Jets situation on defense shortly once Kevin Cheveldayoff informs us about just how badly Josh Morrissey was injured last night against the Coyotes, but for now it seems like this is a chance for the Jets to boldter their LHD which is at a critical state with the Morrissey injury as well as a chance to get a look at a younger defenseman who has had an up and down ride in his short time in the NHL and a somewhat older defenseman from Europe who the Jets have had their eye on for a while coming out of the KHL.

A first round pick back in 2011 by the Montreal Canadiens who was somewhat decent if not underwhelming in his time with the Habs, he was traded to the Sabres this past summer and has seen a lot of press box time with Buffalo before reportedly asking for a move out to another team. Beaulieu is not exactly a player who will get you a lot of points on the back end, but he is a steady defender that doesn’t mind playing a physical game (sometimes too physical mind you)

He’s also a RFA this summer coming off a $2.4 million dollar contract, so you can likely imagine he’ll be motivated to prove himself and earn a new deal. The Jets are banking on that for this stretch run.

Bogdan Kiselevich is an interesting story in his own right. He had spent the last eight seasons as a well thought of defenseman in the KHL with plenty of international experience including a gold medal victory for Russia at the 2018 Olympics. Even though he is just six foot tall, he is a rugged defender who doesn’t shy away from physical play and who wasn’t too bad of a puck handler over in Russia. He’s just turned 29 a couple of weeks ago and is a pending UFA this summer, so again like Beaulieu the Jets will get a good look at him over the next few months and see if he can contribute anything to the club at what should be a low cost.