The Jets Just Gave Us a Clue About What Comes Next

The Winnipeg Jets just claimed Clay Stevenson off waivers. On the surface, given the Connor Hellebuyck situation, that's not exactly surprising. It was just a matter of which goalie it might be. But this is the Jets, and right now their goaltending situation is anything but ordinary.

Connor Hellebuyck isn't at training camp. He requested a trade this summer, and the Jets suspended him after he failed to report. The team has said it is still trying to figure out the right way forward. Stuart Skinner was brought in this summer, presumably as Hellebuyck's backup.

The Jets’ goalie situation has changed rather dramatically.

And now Clay Stevenson is part of the picture. That's what makes this little waiver claim interesting. Stevenson hasn't played much NHL hockey. He has appeared in just five regular-season games for Washington over the past two seasons, going 3-2-0 while allowing 13 goals on 139 shots.

So nobody should look at this and think the Jets have suddenly found another Hellebuyck. That's not what this is. This is about insurance. And maybe a little competition.

The Jets know what they have in Skinner. He's an established NHL goalie who has already played a lot of hockey. But if Hellebuyck is eventually traded, Winnipeg will need more than one goalie who can handle NHL minutes. That's where Stevenson becomes interesting.

The Jets enter the season with a huge question mark in the crease.

A team can survive a lot of things over an 82-game season. It can't survive not knowing who will stop the puck. And the Jets are entering this season with a pretty big question mark sitting in the crease.

That's not necessarily a disaster. In fact, this could be an opportunity. If Stevenson plays well enough, Winnipeg suddenly has another option. Maybe he pushes Skinner a little. Maybe he becomes the No. 2 goalie. Maybe he spends some time in the AHL and gets another chance later.

That's how these things often work. The important thing is that the Jets aren't simply waiting around for the Hellebuyck situation to sort itself out. They're preparing for the possibility that it doesn't. And that may be the real story behind this move.

Stevenson gives the Jets another option in goal.

The Jets had a pretty clear goaltending hierarchy not that long ago. Hellebuyck was the starter. Skinner was supposed to be the backup. Now Hellebuyck is suspended, Skinner may be asked to carry a much bigger load, and Stevenson has suddenly entered the conversation. That's a pretty big change for one summer.

Sometimes a waiver claim isn't really about the player being claimed. Sometimes it's about what the organization thinks might happen next. And with the Jets, nobody really knows yet what happens next in the crease.

The bottom line is that the Jets aren't necessarily betting on Stevenson; they're preparing for a goaltending situation that could look very different depending on what happens with Hellebuyck. For now, they have their goalie. They might need him.