The Jets Nation “year in review” series wrapped earlier this week, so now we return to the middle of the NHL off-season. NHL teams have had a few weeks now to explore the open market, making trades and signings with the goal of improving their rosters for the upcoming 2026-27 NHL season. With an upcoming earlier start to a season that will now feature 84 regular season games, the Jets projected lineup is starting to take shape for opening night. Of course nothing is finalized until opening night, so until then we can only come up with our best go at a projected lineup for the Jets 2026-27 season.

Kyle Connor – Mark Scheifele – Gabriel Vilardi

Cole Perfetti – Viggo Bjork – Brad Lambert

Nino Niederreiter – Adam Lowry – Alex Iafallo

Cole Koepke – Morgan Barron – Isak Rosen

Extras / depth options: Vladislav Namestnikov, Walker Duehr, Noah Gregor, and Nikita Chibrikov

The Jets elite 1st line remains unchanged once again. Connor, Scheifele, and Vilardi are now all locked up long term. Although there was some line shuffling last season, this line should be the number one option for the Jets throughout the 2026-27 season.

The 2nd line is where things get interesting. As of July 24th, the Jets still don’t have a true “2nd line centre”, a position that they continue to hope to acquire in the off-season. Adam Lowry, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Morgan Barron don’t have enough “scoring touch” in their games to be in the top six, so could Viggo Bjork step into the NHL as an 18-year old? The young combination of Perfetti, Bjork and Lambert would certainly please Jets fans, as it would signify a shift in allowing younger Jets prospects a change to thrive in top six roles at the highest level.

As for the bottom six, there won’t be too many changes compared to last season. Niederreiter, Lowry, and Iafallo appear to be the current best options for a 3rd line, with Namestnikov and potentially Chibrikov other options on the wing. The 4th line will feature Koepke and Barron almost for sure, and Rosen could be used higher up in the lineup or as a depth option depending on how the Jets want to shape the rest of their forward group. There’s certainly a few quality options for depth forwards, and there’s also the possibility of seeing some of the Jets top forward prospects enter the lineup later in the season such as Brayden Yager, Danny Zhilkin, and Colby Barlow.

Josh Morrissey – Dylan DeMelo

Dylan Samberg – Neal Pionk

Mario Ferraro – Haydn Fleury

Extras / depth options: Jack St. Ivany, Henry Thrun, Tyrel Bauer, Isaak Phillips

Injured: Elias Salomonsson

Compared to the forward group, there’s less change to the Jets blue line for the upcoming season. The top four remains unchanged for a third straight season. Morrissey and DeMelo continue to be an excellent offensive-defensive combo, and Samberg and Pionk will both be looking to have healthy bounce back seasons.

The third pairing is where they’ll be changes, with the free agent addition of Mario Ferraro. The sixth defender is “up for grabs” at the start of the season, as Elias Salomonsson will be out at the start of the season as he continues to recover from off-season shoulder surgery. The most likely option appears to be Fleury, but there’s a handful of other options that could play alongside Ferraro on the third pairing.

Connor Hellebuyck – Stuart Skinner

We’ve all heard of the noise around Hellebuyck potentially being traded this off-season, but for now he remains the Jets number one goalie. Stuart Skinner was added from the free agent market on July 1st, a netminder which will serve as a quality backup to Hellebuyck to begin the season. If Hellebuyck is moved before the season begins, Skinner has plenty of experience as a starting goalie to step up in that role. The most likely “third option” for the Jets in net is currently Thomas Milic.

Just like everything else in the NHL off-season, things can change quickly when it comes to these projected lineups. The Jets have multiple depth players and quality prospects who will be fighting for roster spots during training camp. Salary cap isn’t an issue for the Jets at the moment, as they currently have about $5.5 million in cap space. It’s important for the Jets to create a lineup that will lead them back to the playoffs, but for now, Jets fans can continue to enjoy the summer weather, and look ahead to August days of the NHL off-season.

The 2026 NHL off-season continues on, as teams continue to explore options for improving their rosters. Make sure to check out the previous articles in this year’s “year in review” series, and stay tuned for more off-season content leading up to the 2026-27 season in late September.

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