The Winnipeg Jets were the busiest team on trade deadline day.
The Jets were involved in six of the 20 trades that were completed on Monday, including four deals in the final minutes leading up the deadline.
“The last hour, it was a real flurry of things,” Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said. “It got pretty hectic right at the end with all the deals that we did, cause some of them didn’t happen, obviously, until the very last minutes.
“I like what we did today for our organization.”
The biggest trade saw the Jets acquire forward Kevin Hayes from the New York Rangers. The Jets gave up forward Brendan Lemieux, as well as a first-round draft pick in this year’s draft, and a conditional fourth-round selection in the 2022 NHL Draft.
“It’s been rumoured for a little bit that this was the place I’d end up at, and I was actually hoping that it was the place that I was going to end up at,” Hayes said.
“Everyone knows how good the Jets are, and they have a serious chance to win the cup. I’m just happy and proud that they wanted to choose me to help them do that.”
Hayes, 26, has 14 goals and 28 assists in 51 games this season. He’s a big centreman at 6’5″, but it’s his two-way game that really attracted the Jets general manager.
“Kevin is a good fit for us in many, many ways,” Cheveldayoff said. “He’s someone that I think everyone talks about. Obviously his size, and his offensive abilities, but I really think what’s going to shine through here is his defensive abilities as well.”
WATCH: Raw Kevin Cheveldayoff Media Conference
Cheveldayoff was an assistant general manager with the Chicago Blackhawks when they grabbed him with the 24th overall pick in the 2010 NHL Draft. Hayes’ contract expires this summer.
READ MORE: Jets acquire longtime Ranger Kevin Hayes
He will wear number 12 with the Jets and is expected to be available to play against the Minnesota Wild on Wednesday at Bell MTS Place.
The Jets also re-acquired forward Matt Hendricks who left the club as a free agent last summer after playing one season in Winnipeg. The Jets only had to surrender a seventh-round draft pick to get him back. The moves add depth up front. The 37-year-old is another veteran voice in the locker room and his biggest contributions will probably be off the ice.
“He’s someone that, again, I think provides a lot of leadership in our room,” Cheveldayoff said. “If you want to be the ultimate champion, it’s a long grind. And you have to be prepared for it and you need people that are going to help you prepare for that. And Hendy is a real pro, that comes, competes, prepares, and is ready to play every night.”
READ MORE: Veteran Hendricks back in Winnipeg Jets colours
After playing four seasons with the Jets’ organization, Nic Petan is now a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Jets shipped him out for centre Par Lindholm. The trade will give Petan a fresh start after he appeared in just 13 games with the Jets this season.
“Nic was a great player in our organization,” he said. “Wasn’t getting the opportunity here, and I made some commitments to him and his representatives that I would try and find something that would give him the opportunity to get a new start in an organization.”
READ MORE: Petan shipped out to Toronto as Winnipeg Jets make three more trades
Lindholm has struggled offensively in his first season in the NHL. The 27-year-old rookie has just one goal and 11 assists in 61 games with the Leafs.
With Dustin Byfuglien, Josh Morrissey, and Joe Morrow all dealing with injuries, Cheveldayoff also upgraded his defence corps. He acquired defenceman Nathan Beaulieu from the Buffalo Sabres, and fellow blue-liner Bogdan Kiselevich from the Florida Panthers. The Jets gave up a 2019 sixth-round selection for Beaulieu, and a 2021 seventh-round draft pick for Kiselevich.
Beaulieu, 26, has three goals and four assists in 30 games this season. He played two seasons with the Sabres after playing his first five NHL seasons for the Montreal Canadiens.
Kiselevich is a 29-year-old rookie. He has eight assists in 32 games in his first NHL season after playing in Russia in the KHL.
The final swap saw the Jets get centreman Alex Broadhurst from the Columbus Blue Jackets for future considerations. The 25-year-old Broadhurst has just two games of NHL experience and will continue to play for the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters for the rest of the season.
To make room for their five new players, forward Mason Appleton and defenceman Tucker Poolman were reassigned to the AHL’s Manitoba Moose.
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