2 Winnipeg Jets Prospects Who Could Get Called Up This Season

As the season gets underway, players will begin to suffer injuries as they sacrifice their bodies for the sake of their team, not to mention the ever-present concern of a positive Covid diagnosis. Eventually, there will be players who will need to miss games, and others will need to be called in to replace them in the lineup. Here are two such prospects who could see some playing time on the Winnipeg Jets this season.

Cole Perfetti

The no-doubter on this list, Perfetti is one of the Jets' top prospects, if not the top prospect, and he's earning that status in the AHL. While he is second in scoring on the AHL's Manitoba Moose with 6 goals and 15 points in 17 games, David Gustafsson is only 1 point ahead and it took him 5 more games to get there, not to mention Gustafsson is a -2, and Perfetti is a +6. Perfetti should be the team's leading scorer by Christmas at this rate. He's already had a brief stint with the Jets this year, a pair of games that didn't see him produce any points. It's clear the young winger, who stands only 5'10" and may get a rough ride as he gets used to the NHL, is benefitting from his development time, and the Jets are unlikely to rush that process. Perfetti is all but a lock to play for Team Canada at the World Juniors, and his performance there may dictate how quickly the Jets work him into their lineup. They're unlikely to call him up before then, but down the stretch to the playoffs, the kid could be a sparkplug addition to their offence. He already has a set of skills that are NHL-level, it's what got him selected 10th overall in 2020, and once the rest of his game rounds out he'll be an NHL contributor on a regular basis.

Leon Gawanke

Here's a guy who's had a much longer road to the NHL. Selected by the Jets in the 5th round way back in 2017, German defender Leon Gawanke spent two seasons in the QMJHL, followed by what is now three seasons with the Manitoba Moose, all while playing for Germany's National Team at the U20s, the World Championships, and most recently for the Men's International Team. This year feels different though. Gawanke is currently the most productive blueliner on the Moose with 3 goals and 14 points in 22 games, his best scoring pace as a pro. Also of note is his +9 rating and his 6 PIM. It suggests that the young German is capable of producing at the offensive end without sacrificing defensive play. At 22-years old, Gawanke looks well on track to earning himself a spot on the Jets' NHL roster. As a right-shot defender, he fills highly sought-after criteria in the league these days, making him even more likely to get called up if injuries hit the Winnipeg blueline. The kid is well on his way, and his patience with the development process is about to pay off. There's also the added bonus that he can score goals like this one, an overtime winner no less. Check out that pivot in the neutral zone!