Welcome back to yet another edition of the “Jets Nation year in review” series to wrap up the Winnipeg Jets 2025-26 season. This series is getting closer to its conclusion, as the NHL Draft and the first week of NHL free agency are now complete. I’ll continue to look at the individual seasons from Jets players throughout the 2025-26 season and also take a quick look ahead to what the upcoming 2026-27 season may have in store for each player. Tonight’s players (another double feature for tonight) is two of the Jets better depth players who did what they could to contribute to the Jets 2025-26 season: Alex Iafallo and Morgan Barron.

Iafallo and Barron entered the 2025-26 season with similar expectations. Iafallo was entering his 3rd full season with the Jets, and each season so far he’s been around a 30 point player. Barron was entering his 4th full season with the Jets, and he’s an example of a player who has gone from a “whatever” depth piece on the Jets roster to an important depth player who continues to grow his two-way game. In a season where the Jets lacked depth scoring throughout their lineup, Iafallo and Barron were two of the players who didn’t have any major slumps in the season, leading to a quality year for both of them.

Iafallo was acquired in the big Jets trade which sent Pierre-Luc Dubois to the Los Angeles Kings three years ago. Since his arrival, Iafallo has played up and down the Jets lineup, earning his ice time through a strong two-way play style. Iafallo appeared in all 82 games the previous two seasons, and in 2025-26 he finished just short of that milestone with 79 games played. Iafallo scored 13 goals and added 16 assists for 29 points.

Iafallo’s 29 points were just two short of his total of 31 from last season, but it was good enough for (tied in) 6th overall in Jets scoring. To put that number into context from last season, Iafallo’s 31 points ranked him 11th in team scoring, highlighting the big difference in overall Jets depth scoring in the 2025-26 season. Iafallo remained a disciplined player, only collecting 14 penalty minutes, and Iafallo was one of the few Jets forwards who finished the season in the positive for his +/- rating with a +3.

The 32-year old forward is about to enter the 2nd season of his current three year contract with a cap hit of $3.66 million.  Iafallo will enter free agency in 2028 at age 34, but until then he’ll remain an important piece of the Jets roster in the near future. Iafallo’s production and cap hit make him a player possibly intriguing for the trade block if the Jets can’t re-gain some of their success from the 2024-25 season. Iafallo is listed (on PuckPedia) as the 2nd line left winger on the Jets depth chart, but he’s able to play up and down the lineup when injuries happen, and has plenty of experience as a penalty killer.

Morgan Barron is an example of a Jets player who continues to become more of a fan favourite each season. Like Iafallo, Barron is a frequent penalty killer on the Jets who continues to develop his two-way game. In the early stages of Barron’s time with the Jets it seemed like Barron who only be a tough “4th line” type of player, but Barron has developed his scoring abilities to a point where he’s now a very solid depth scoring forward option on the Jets.

Barron had a slight “down” year in the 2024-25 season with just 15 points in 74 games. The 2025-26 season gave Barron some injury troubles, including a lower-body injury which kept him out during the last few weeks of the Jets playoff push at the end of the season. Despite appearing in just 65 games, Barron scored 11 goals and 12 assists for 23 points, a new career high.

Barron’s 23 points were good enough for 8th on the Jets in scoring, another indication of just how much depth scoring the Jets lacked from the rest of the team. Barron had a respectable 31 penalty minutes for a bottom six forward, and again like Iafallo he finished with a positive +/- rating of +5.

The 27-year old forward is preparing to enter year two, the final year, of his current two year contract with a cap hit of $1.85 million. Barron will be an unrestricted free agent after the 2026-27 season, but with his recent improvements he appears to be worthy of a longer term extension. The Jets did more line shuffling then usual in the 2025-26 season, but if Barron can find a more regular spot in the lineup, it’ll benefit his production as he continues to gain chemistry with his new and familiar linemates.

Iafallo and Barron will be back on the Jets roster in the 2026-27 season looking to improve on their very solid seasons as important depth forwards. Both players can provide scoring when needed, and their penalty killing skills are much appreciated and valuable as they continue to embrace and develop their two-way games.

The 2026 NHL Free Agency opening week is over, and now comes the time for teams to explore the remaining options left on the market. Stay tuned for the next edition of the Jets Nation “year in review” series article coming in a few days! There will likely be just three articles left in this series, as I’ll be recapping the remaining forwards, the remaining defencemen, and a final article on players who were traded mid-season or played in a small amount of games as call-ups throughout the season.

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