Jets' Connor Hellebuyck named Vezina finalist along with Darcy Kuemper, Andrei Vasilevskiy
Article content
He posted career bests in wins (47), shutouts (eight), goals-against average (2.00) and save percentage (.925) as Winnipeg finished the regular season with the league's best record.
Despite the regular-season success, the announcement comes at a time when Hellebuyck is struggling with his form in the playoffs.
He has been pulled in Winnipeg's last two games against St. Louis, surrendering 11 goals on 43 shots over that span, as the Blues have come back to tie their first-round best-of-seven series with the Presidents' Trophy winners at 2-2.
Kuemper, in his second stint with the Kings, posted a 31-11-7 record, a 2.02 goals-against average, a .922 save percentage and five shutouts as L.A. finished second in the Pacific Division.
The Kings are tied 2-2 in their first-round series with the Oilers after losing two straight in Edmonton.
Vasilevskiy posted a 38-20-5 record with a 2.18 GAA, .921 save percentage and six shutouts as the Lightning finished second in the Atlantic Division. He won the award in 2018-19 and is a finalist for the fifth time.
The Lightning trailed the Florida Panthers 2-1 in their first-round series heading into Game 4 on Monday night in Sunrise.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Winnipeg Free Press
8 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
Hart for Hellebuyck heard through the grapevine?
This might be the equivalent of scoring on your own net. It appears the NHL may have sprung a leak and drowned out any drama surrounding two major year-end award winners. A photo currently making the rounds on social media appears to show Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck kneeling in front of the Vezina and Hart trophies. Whoopsie! FRED GREENSLADE / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES Video leaked over the weekend that showed Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck with both the Vezina and Hart trophies. The official announcement will be made Thursday. It's not clear where the image originated and one should always be wary of manipulation and fakes in this age of artificial intelligence. Neither the league nor the Jets will comment. But it's an intriguing twist considering the league has done away with a traditional awards ceremony this season, opting for a more grassroots approach to handing out hockey hardware. They have been pre-recording videos recently in which the winners of various honours, including the Selke Trophy, Masterton and Jack Adams, have been surprised on the spot. There's still a few more big ones to come, including the best goaltender and league MVP, which are set to be unveiled this Thursday at 5 p.m. CT in an hour-long TV special before Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers. The purported Hellebuyck photo, which appears to have been taken near a lake, includes a large boom microphone hanging above him and an unidentified person capturing the moment on their phone. There's no question Hellebuyck is a slam-dunk to win the Vezina, which would be his second-straight and third overall. The 32-year-old essentially lapped the goaltending field this past year as he went 47-12-3 in 62 starts with a 2.00 goals-against-average, a .925 save percentage and eight shutouts. Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Darcy Kuemper (Los Angeles Kings) are the other two finalists, but the only mystery is which one is going to finish second to Hellebuyck. The much bigger development would be Hellebuyck becoming just the eighth goaltender in NHL history — and the first since Carey Price in 2014-15 — to capture the Hart. Tampa's Nikita Kucherov (who led the league in points) and Edmonton's Leon Draisaitl (who scored the most goals) are the other two finalists, and Kucherov was just named the Ted Lindsay Award winner as 'most outstanding player' as voted on by fellow skaters. The Hart is decided by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association, while NHL general managers vote on the Vezina. All ballots had to be turned in before the playoffs, where Hellebuyck struggled at times in going 6-7 with a 3.08 goals-against average and .866 save percentage. Stay tuned. And, if Hellebuyck does take home the hardware, at least pretend to act surprised. Scott Arniel will have to settle for second-best this time around. The Jets head coach finished as the runner-up to Washington Capitals bench boss Spencer Carbery for the Jack Adams Award, which was announced this past weekend. Carbery received 81 of the 103 first-place votes cast by members of the NHL Broadcasters' Association and finished with 464 voting points overall. Arniel got 16 first-place votes and had 249 points, while Marty St. Louis of the Montreal Canadiens was third with 66 points. A total of 13 different coaches received at least one vote for first, second or third. Funny enough, neither Paul Maurice (Florida) or Kris Knoblauch (Edmonton) were among them, despite their teams meeting in the Stanley Cup for the second straight spring. Carbery led the Capitals to top spot in the Eastern Conference and second overall in the regular-season standings behind only Arniel's Jets, who went a franchise-best 56-22-4. Both Washington and Winnipeg won their first-round playoff series before getting knocked out in the second round. One of the more intriguing prospects in the Jets' pipeline might be staying put in Russia. Dmitry Rashevsky, who was selected by Winnipeg in the fifth round of the 2021 draft, was a pending free agent after spending the past five years with Moscow Dynamo of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL). Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff said last month the team was in talks with his agent about potentially bringing the 24-year-old to North America for the first time. However, news surfaced this past weekend that Rashevsky has now signed a three-year offer sheet with rival Avangard Omsk of the KHL, which would seemingly close that door. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. However, in a plot twist, reports emerged Monday that Dynamo will exercise its option to match — but then plans to turn around and trade Rashevsky to another team, Metallurg Magnitogorsk. If Rashevsky balks at that, could he potentially pull a power play and take his puck skills across the pond after all? Rashevsky had 40 points (19G, 21A) in 65 games this past season and scored 24, 19 and 19 goals in the three seasons prior to that. He would be a nice add to the organization's forward depth. There's often a big risk with drafting Russian skaters, and it's the sole reason Rashevsky slipped as far as he did in his draft year. X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg Mike McIntyreReporter Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike. Every piece of reporting Mike produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print — part of the Free Press's tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press's history and mandate, and learn how our newsroom operates. Our newsroom depends on a growing audience of readers to power our journalism. If you are not a paid reader, please consider becoming a subscriber. Our newsroom depends on its audience of readers to power our journalism. Thank you for your support.
CTV News
9 hours ago
- CTV News
Whiteout Street Parties bring in nearly $235K to help Winnipeg's most vulnerable
Nearly $235,000 was raised during seven Whiteout Street Parties this playoff run, with all the money helping the city's most vulnerable. Uploaded June 9, 2025. (Jamie Dowsett/CTV News Winnipeg) Two rounds of Winnipeg Jets playoff hockey have resulted in almost $235,000 being raised for United Way Winnipeg. There were seven Whiteout Street Parties held throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs this year, which resulted in 35,000 fans showing up to cheer on the Jets. Half of the price of each ticket plus money from the Party in the Plaza tickets on Hargrave Street was going toward United Way. The money has now been tallied up, and $234,890 was raised. The money will go back into the community, helping support mental health, addictions, recovery, and homelessness in Winnipeg. 'We are so excited that these dollars raised will go to support frontline agencies doing the incredibly difficult and important work,' said Connie Walker, the president and CEO of United Way Winnipeg. She said four organizations that help Winnipeggers will each be receiving a portion of the money: Downtown Community Safety Partnership, N'Dinawemak-Our Relatives' Place, Okichidah Pimahtisiwin Kiskinawmatowin, and Kã Ni Kãnichihk-Velma's House. 'While this is about hockey and it is about community spirit, this is also about making a difference for people. This is about being a caring community. I could not be more grateful or more proud.' Whiteout Street Parties have been taking over a portion of Donald Street since 2019, as thousands of fans have been packing the area to celebrate Winnipeg Jets hockey. Since then, more than $546,000 has been raised. Speaking at the news conference Monday, Mark Chipman, the executive chairman of True North Sports + Entertainment, said so much work goes into putting on the parties, and the result afterward is so important. 'A friend of mine once said we're a collective act of will. Nothing has ever really come easy to us here. Once upon a time it did, but those days are long past, and everything we have here, whether it's our cultural institutions or our social service network, has been willed by the people who are here and will it every day,' said Chipman. 'This is really a small sum when you think of the totality of it. But we know it's going to places that can really use it, where people are engaged daily, who really, really care about making the most vulnerable people in our community safer.' Chipman said he hopes to be back next year with another cheque in hand, but with more money, which would mean a deeper run for the Jets in the playoffs.
Winnipeg Free Press
11 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
New coach Lane Lambert says he expects to lead the Kraken to the playoffs
SEATTLE (AP) — Lane Lambert said he feels no pressure to turn the Seattle Kraken into a playoff contender. But his own expectation is to do exactly that. Lambert was introduced as the Kraken's coach on Monday at the team's practice facility. He was hired on May 29 after spending last season as an associate head coach with Toronto. The Maple Leafs won 52 games and the Atlantic Division title, but were eliminated in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals by Florida, which is currently playing in the Stanley Cup Final. He will become the third head coach in the history of the Kraken, who are entering their fifth season and have made the playoffs just once in their previous four. 'I have an expectation of myself and of my role and of my abilities,' the 60-year-old Lambert said. 'You start on Day 1 and it's a process, it's a journey. If you do the right things through that journey and do the right things every day and look to get better every day and stick with the process, the results will take care of themselves.' Lambert takes over for Dan Bylsma, who was fired on April 21 after one season. Seattle was well outside the playoff picture by the time of the February break for the 4 Nations Face-off and finished 35-41-6 (76 points). That was 20 points below the West's final wild-card spot and five fewer than the Kraken's 81 points in 2023-24. 'It became very evident that Lane presented the attributes we were looking for,' general manager Jason Botterill said. 'The combination of presence and knowledge to work with veteran players, and would also be dedicated to interact with young players.' Seattle ranked in the bottom third of the league on the power play (23rd), faceoff winning percentage (24th) and average shots per game (25th). It was 21st on the penalty kill, an area in which Lambert helped the Leafs improve from 23rd to fourth. 'There are priorities in certain areas, but everything has to be addressed,' Lambert said. 'You can't build Rome in a day, and that's the whole process from Day 1. You start with the process, start demanding, and you start instilling your systems, your structure, your details. But definitely, our special teams have to be better. We'll better in our defensive zone. I know we will be. So that would be the start and the focus.' Lambert has had NHL coaching jobs since 2011. His only head coaching experience came with the New York Islanders, beginning at the start of the 2022-23 season and ending when he was fired in January 2024. In his only full season, the Islanders made the playoffs but were eliminated in the first round. 'You go through an experience like that, you get let go, and you have a lot of time to reflect,' he said. 'If you don't have an ego, you can say, 'Gee, I'd do this differently or that differently. Or I'd do this or that the same.' There's certain little things I'll look at and look into changing.' Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. He was an assistant with Nashville from 2011-14, then with Washington from 2014-18, with the Capitals winning the Stanley Cup in 2018. The Islanders hired him as associate head coach prior to 2018-19. The teams he has worked for have made the playoffs 10 times. Lambert inherits a roster that includes veterans Jaden Schwartz (a team-high 26 goals last season), Jared McCann (22 goals and a team-leading 61 points), Eeli Tolvanen (23 goals) and Chandler Stephenson (38 assists). The Kraken also have highly regarded young talent such as 2023 Rookie of the Year Matty Beniers (20 goals, 23 assists) and Shane Wright (19 goals, 25 assists). 'When you look at the team and the balance, we have great talent,' Lambert said. 'We have veteran players. The non-negotiables are that we have to play the right way — that's the formula.' ___ AP NHL:
