The Winnipeg Jets are on the verge of elimination, trailing 3-1 to the Colorado Avalanche in their first-round series of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Vezina Trophy candidate Connor Hellebuyck is not playing up to his standard, hurting his team’s chances of winning.
Hellebuyck has to be better so that the Jets can win this series against the Avalanche. In this series alone, Hellebuyck has a 5.22 goals-against average and a .870 save percentage.
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However, according to StatMuse, Hellebuyck’s struggles are not limited to the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs; they can also be traced back to the 2018 Stanley Cup Playoffs when the Jets lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in five games in the Western Conference Final.
In three of the five games, Hellebuyck had a sub-.900 save percentage, averaging a .896 save percentage. In those three games, Hellebuyck had a 3.08 goals-against average. Those numbers are not spectacular for one of the best goalies in the world.
Though his numbers improved slightly, when the Jets needed to be at his best, Hellebuyck would still give up goals when he should not have. There were times during the COVID Bubble of 2021 when he gave up three or more goals to the Montreal Canadiens in Round 2 of the Stanley Cup in three of the games. Winnipeg got swept.
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After missing the playoffs in 2022, Winnipeg was back in the playoffs in 2023 but fell to the Golden Knights again after taking Game 1. Hellebuyck yet again underperformed against his former teammate Laurent Brossoit at the time.
Hellebuyck averaged a 3.44 goals against average and a .886 save percentage in the five-game series, giving up 18 goals. That trend has continued into these playoffs for the presumed Vezina Trophy winner.
Hellebuyck, through four games, is averaging a 5.22 goals-against average.870 save percentage, allowing 19 goals. These are not good numbers. Over his last eight playoff games, Hellebuyck has given up three or more goals. Winnipeg needs him to be better.
When a goalie who had a record of 37-19-4 with a 2.39 goals against average, a .921 save percentage, and five shutouts, you expect more from him than a record of 2-7 in his last nine postseason games with 5.24 goals against average and a .868 save percentage.
However, the Jets structure in front of Hellebuyck and their poor penalty kill are not helping the situation. The Jets penalty kill is 14th out of 16 teams operating at 60 percent. That is not good enough when Colorado operates at a 40 percent clip on the powerplay.
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In Game 4, the Jets gave Colorado four powerplays in the second period. The Avalanche converted on two of four of them, and Hellebuyck got pulled.
Your best penalty killer has to be your goalie, but when a team like the Jets take undisciplined penalties, those penalties always end up as goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. And with the way special teams matter this year in the playoffs, the Jets can’t allow Colorado this many chances.
Yes, Connor Hellebuyck has to be better. But the Winnipeg Jets were the best defensive team this year, and when you look at it, it goes against per game this season. And they’re not playing like one right now.
The Jets are not helping their starting goalie, Connor Hellebuyck, but he needs to play up to his regular-season numbers. Otherwise, this series is over, and more questions will be raised.