Veteran defenceman Brenden Dillon unlikely to return to Winnipeg

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Cooper Godin
May 15, 2024 (5:34 PM)

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Defenceman Brenden Dillon playing with the Winnipeg Jets.

Photo credit: NHL.com

The Winnipeg Jets saw their season come to a close on April 30th as they lost in Game 5 of their first round series to Nathan MacKinnon and the Colorado Avalanche. Change will be coming to the Jets this summer both on and off the ice.

Off the ice, the Jets are in search of a new head coach after Rick Bowness announced his retirement from the NHL. The loss of Bowness is huge for the Winnipeg Jets, who are now without one of the finalists for the Jack Adams Award, but there are plenty of solid coaches who are free agents right now.

As for the Winnipeg Jets' roster, there may be some minor tweaking to the team's depth, especially on the blueline and now it appears that one of their veteran defencemen is unlikely to return next season.

According to Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun, the liklihood of Brenden Dillon returning to the Jets in 2024-25 is pretty slim and that there have been no contract talks between the two sides since the 2023-24 campaign ended or during the regular season.

"I'm told the likelihood of Brenden Dillon returning to #NHLJets next year is slim at best, and he will become a UFA.

Sources say Dillon's camp didn't receive an offer & held no conversations regarding an extension during the season. He hasn't heard from the team since it ended." Billeck said.

He added, "To add to this, there's still hope from Dillon's side that it could work out before July 1. He said that during his exit interview, and that remains true, I'm told."

Dillon, 33, has spent the last three seasons with the Winnipeg Jets after being traded to them in July 2021 by the Washington Capitals. This season, Dillon set a new career-high in goals with 8, which was two more than his previous high of 6 during the 2013-14 campaign with the Dallas Stars.

It'll be interesting to see how this develops in the coming weeks and whether or not the Winnipeg Jets decide to come in at last minute and offer him a contract before he hits unrestricted free agency on July 1st. If Dillon hits the open market on Canada Day, there certainly won't be a shortage of suitors as he could be a solid depth piece for a contending team.

Previously on Bladeofsteel

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Three Pittsburgh Penguins undergo surgery including Kris Letang

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15 MAI \| 145 ANSWERS Veteran defenceman Brenden Dillon unlikely to return to Winnipeg What do you think the AAV will be on Dillon's next contract?
$3-$3.5 million	61	42.1 %
$3.5-$4 million	43	29.7 %
$4-$4.5 million	26	17.9 %
$4.5 million+	15	10.3 %
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