The Winnipeg Jets are now 28 days away from opening their 2026-27 NHL season at home against the Boston Bruins. The Jets are also just 51 days away from hosting the Montreal Canadiens at Princess Auto Stadium for the 2026 Tim Hortons NHL Heritage Classic, with tickets for all games of the 2026-27 season on sale now. The long days of the NHL off-season are almost over, as we’re now in a month where there will be pre-season games played.

Today marks yet another continuation of a series that I’ve covered the past two off-seasons known as the “goals and expectations” series. This series quickly previews what to expect (and what to hope for) from Jets players in the 2026-27 season. This could be the last player that’s highlighted, but their will be a “finale” to this season that briefly talks about the players that weren’t mentioned so far.

It feels timely with the Connor Hellebuyck trade request news that we talk about the Jets very likely starting goalie for the 2026-27 season: Stuart Skinner. I say “very likely” because there’s always the possibility that the Hellebuyck trade includes a goalie being sent to Winnipeg, whether that be another fringe starting goalie or a younger goalie who’s ready to split the crease with Skinner.

After a below average start with the Oilers last season, Skinner was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the Tristan Jarry trade. Skinner was drafted by the Oilers in the 3rd round of the 2017 NHL Draft, and although it seems like he’s been in the league for a while now, he’s only been in the NHL for around five years. After his draft year, Skinner worked his way up from the ECHL to the AHL, before finally getting his chance as a starting goalie with the Oilers in the 2022-23 season.

Skinner’s best season in his fairly young career came back in the 2023-24 season. The Oilers were a fantastic team that season, but Skinner’s play definitely contributed to their success. In 59 appearances Skinner posted a 36-16-5 record with a 2.62 GAA and a 0.905 SV%. After back to back Stanley Cup Finals appearances with the Oilers, Skinner’s play “fell off” last season, and the Oilers struggled in the early parts of the season. Skinner had some positive moments after his move to the Penguins, but a disappointing three playoff starts Skinner became a free agent after the Penguins were eliminated.

The 27-year old goaltender will be entering the 1st year of his new two year contract at a cap hit of $3.75 million. Skinner’s deal was one of the “main moves” the Jets made on July 1st, and at the time (even without Hellebuyck’s trade request confirmed) it seemed like Skinner would be a very solid upgrade to their backup goalie position. Now with Hellebuyck confirmed to be on the move sometime soon, Skinner is getting ready to take on the role of the Jets number one goalie. Unless the Jets acquire a better goalie than Skinner in the Hellebuyck trade, it’ll be up to Skinner to get in the crease and help the Jets get some wins in the 2026-27 season.

So what should be the goals and expectations for Stuart Skinner next season? The Jets struggled on the defensive side last season, which led to down years from both Hellebuyck and Eric Comrie. Skinner needs a good defensive group behind him to have success, so the addition of Mario Ferraro and a fully healthy blue line need to do what they can to help Skinner be the goalie he once was with the Oilers not long ago. I’d expect the Jets to give Thomas Milic a fair shot at the backup role (if no goalie is acquired in the Hellebuyck trade), so Skinner should be able to get between 20 and 25 wins this season. As for goals against average and save percentage, those can be tough to predict, but I’d say Skinner should have a goals against average around 2.80 and a save percentage around 0.890%.

I’ve mentioned it before, but the Jets need to do whatever they can do help Skinner be in a position to succeed. The big asterisk is of course what comes back from the Hellebuyck trade, as there’s the potential for a young or even veteran goalie to join the net and split starts with Skinner throughout the season. As it stands, Skinner will be the go-to goalie, with Milic projected to be the backup goalie. Jets fans might be a little anxious to see how Skinner performs with this pressure, but there’s hope that Skinner can turn his game back around with the second Canadian team of his NHL career.

The 2026 NHL off-season is quickly wrapping up, with pre-season games starting in about two weeks. Teams are start to hit the ice for training camps, so hockey season is almost back. Stay tuned one more “goals and expectations” article coming up soon, as I’ll look at what to expect from the rest of the 2026-27 Jets players throughout the lineup. Let us know on our Daily Faceoff Winnipeg socials what you thought about this series!

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