It was a strong sophomore season for the speedy winger who increased his stats in nearly every aspect of the game. After two strong years in the NHL, Connor is up for a new contract this summer and nobody is quite sure what to expect. With a high pedigree and solid numbers, it’s going to be interesting to see how the contract negotiations go, especially with the Jets being close to the salary cap.

Having finished his entry level contract, Connor is now an RFA this summer. It’s unprecedented territory for Winnipeg as both Laine and Connor are looking for massive raises after their excellent starts to their careers. Connor is coming off a 34 goal season and will probably try to sign a long term deal. However, some reports have Connor nearing the $7-8 million mark which is a hefty price to pay for a pure goal scorer that hasn’t shown many other sides to his game. Their might be a gap between Connor’s camp and Cheveldayoff but they will hopefully be able to come up with a solution and get a deal done fairly soon.

Connor had excellent numbers this season with 34 goals and 66 points in only his second full season in the NHL. Those are impressive numbers for sure, but Connor has had some help along the way.

Connor had the benefit of playing alongside Scheifele and Wheeler all season long which certainly gave him a large boost statistically. It’s hard to imagine Connor scoring more than 30 goals had he played with Little and Ehlers for the whole season. However, Connor does deserve some credit because he still made the most of his opportunity.

Connor’s style of play fits perfectly with Scheifele and Wheeler because of his smooth skating and natural scoring ability. Scheifele can win puck battles, Wheeler can pass better than anyone, and Connor has the innate ability to find the back of the net. It’s a trio that managed to score a ton of points even though they tended to get out-shot while on the ice.

Although Connor’s boxscore stats look strong, the line as a whole struggled with the advanced stats department. Connor had an xGoals% of 46.6% which was near the bottom of the roster. His scoring chances for % of 47.04% also put him near the bottom of the team. These paltry numbers likely have more to do with the line as a whole rather than Connor individually as the entire line struggled for much of the year despite scoring lots of points.

 

As far as Connor’s effect on his teammates, there isn’t much to say. For the most part, players aren’t much better or worse with Connor as a linemate. The eyetest would make it seem that Connor is a passenger on his line as he relies on his teammates to do most of the work while he puts the finishing touch on the play. While the ability to score goals is always important, it should be noted that Connor hasn’t shown much ability to drive a line by himself.

While nobody expects Connor to be driving possession every shift, it does limit his effectiveness if he only performs well with certain players. It would be interesting to watch him play with some other players for a stretch of games to see how he performs without premier linemates.

One interesting part of Connor’s season was his usage on the penalty kill. In his rookie year, Connor didn’t play any penalty kill minutes but this year he managed 41 seconds per game. Connor’s quickness is an asset on the PK because he’s able to beat players to pucks and win races down the ice. Even though he isn’t known as a defensive player, getting some time on the penalty kill is a good way to develop defensive habits and positioning.

The important thing to realize is that Connor is still young and will continue to grow his game for the next few years. Hopefully he can round out his defensive game to go along with his great skating and stickhandling ability to become a true first line winger.

Connor built upon a strong season and had an even better playoff run. He tied for the team lead in goals (3) with Laine, one of which was a massive game winner in overtime during game four. He finished second on the team in points with five and appeared to be dangerous almost every game.

The future is in Connor’s hands right now. On the verge of a new contract, Connor is heading into next year as one of the most promising players on the team. He’s got the natural gift of goal scoring and has showcased it at every level. If he can round out the rest of his game and begin to drive the play a bit more, he is going to become a really strong forward for years to come.