Stuart Skinner officially signs a new contact with Canadian NHL team
Photo credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
The Winnipeg Jets just signed Stuart Skinner to a two-year deal at $3.75M AAV - and it has nothing to do with replacing Connor Hellebuyck.
Per Elliotte Friedman and Darren Dreger, the signing is confirmed.
The 27-year-old arrives after a turbulent 2025-26 season split between the Edmonton Oilers and Pittsburgh Penguins, where he posted a .885 save percentage - well below league average for a starter.
Read that number carefully. A .885 SV% goaltender just earned a 44 percent raise on his previous $2.6M AAV contract, which tells you everything about how thin the goalie market is right now.
This isn't about Skinner - it's about leverage
Cheveldayoff didn't sign Stuart Skinner to replace Connor Hellebuyck. He signed Skinner to remove Winnipeg's desperation from the trade market.
The moment the Jets locked in a bridge goalie, every team pursuing Hellebuyck - reportedly the Buffalo Sabres and New Jersey Devils - lost their biggest edge: the belief that Winnipeg had no viable fallback.
Hellebuyck won the Hart Trophy and Vezina Trophy in 2024-25, then led Team USA to Olympic gold.
His trade value is generational.
But desperate sellers get bad returns. Cheveldayoff just signaled to every bidder: the Winnipeg Jets can survive without him.
What Skinner's raise reveals about the NHL goalie market
The Skinner signing also exposes how barren the goalie pool has become across the league.
Teams are paying $3.75M for a question mark because better options simply do not exist.
Scott Arniel's Jets finished 35-35-12 last season. If Connor Hellebuyck leaves, they will need more than a bridge goaltender to be a legitimate contender.
Skinner's deal is not the story here. It is the opening move in what should become the Winnipeg Jets' most consequential trade negotiation in years.
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Penguins sign former Capitals defenseman right at the start of free agency