Training camps around the NHL kicked off today, with the start of the regular season now just under 3 weeks away. The Jets begin their preseason on Saturday night, so it’s a quick start over the next 2 days as preparations continue for the upcoming season.

The initial 53 man roster for the Jets at camp was revealed yesterday, and 1 key player who was not seen on the ice on day 1 was Cole Perfetti. The 22-year old restricted free agent remains without a contract extension, and his absence from day 1 of training camp could point towards a deal not headed in the right terms just yet. Perfetti has been optimistic that a deal will be reached soon, and I’m sure the Jets will be eagerly waiting for his arrival at camp.

The other 50+ skaters were on the ice today, including NHL regulars, Manitoba Moose regulars, unsigned draft picks and even a few free agent invitees. The players were split into 2 practice groups, Team Neufeld and Team Lesuk. The team will follow the same format tomorrow, and you can see the full schedule for the Jets training camp HERE.

Team Neufield kicked off the training camp this morning, which would have included the unsigned Cole Perfetti. The top forward line in this group was Kyle Connor, Mark Scheifele and Gabriel Vilardi, a preview of the Jets projected top line this season. The 2nd forward line featured 3 intriguing prospects who may not make the team this season, but all are trending in the right direction. The line combination consisted of the newly acquired Brayden Yager, Jacob Julien and Nikita Chibrikov.

The 3rd, 4th and “5th” lines were a mix of bottom 6 forwards and rookies. The defense featured Josh Morrissey with newly acquired Dylan Coghlan. The 2nd pairing caught my attention, featuring Dylan Samberg and Jets top defence prospect Elias Salomonsson. One of the fun parts about training camp is looking too in-depth when it comes to these line combinations, as usually they are just mostly pairings that the coaches think will work well together in practice or even for preseason games.

Switching over to Team Neufeld, the top forward combination was Nikolaj Ehlers, Vladislav Namestnikov and Alex Iafallo. This line is a potential look at the Jets 2nd line, with Iafallo likely filling in for where Cole Perfetti will be playing once his contract extension is finally signed. The Jets also appear to be bringing back the “LAN” line with Nino Niederreiter, Adam Lowry and Mason Appleton paired together once again.

Following day 1 of training camp, the Jets media spoke with several players and coaches to get their thoughts on camp and the upcoming season. One of those players was Vladislav Namestnikov, who is preparing for his 2nd full season with the Jets. This season there will be more eyes on Namestnikov, as he’s projected to be the team’s 2nd line centre. Everyone is wondering, can Namestnikov really be the guy to hold this important spot on the team?

Namestnikov reassured reporters that “my mindset doesn’t change, I’m coming into camp and working hard and earning that spot for sure”. Another important question that came up during Namestnikov’s media availability was about the team’s exit interviews from last season. A common goal going into the 2024-25 season was that player’s needed to be able to find that extra “5-10 percent” that will make them more likely to succeed on a nightly basis.

The answer was simple for Vladdy, who said “I have to be better as well, I mean we’ve talked about it before… we had a great regular season but it didn’t go our way in the playoffs, so everyone has to elevate their game and go from there”. It’s pretty clear around the Jets locker room that last season didn’t end as they would have hoped for, so players are hungry to return this season and prove that they can take this team to that next level.

I’ll continue to observe what’s being talked about at training camp tomorrow, as the team prepares for their 1st preseason game on Saturday  night in Winnipeg against the Minnesota Wild. It’ll be interesting to see who plays in this game, as usually the 1st preseason game is reserved for young players or those who were invited on professional tryouts. Keep a look out this weekend for some instant analysis on this game, and a preview of future preseason games to come as the Jets continue their final preparations for the 2024-25 regular season.