NHL Prospect Watch: Winnipeg Jets

Ahead of the 2024-25 hockey season, we’re diving into the WHL prospect pool for each of the NHL’s 32 teams. Throughout the series, we’ll highlight WHLers who have been signed to an NHL contract, were recently drafted, or are included in the NHL’s definition of a rookie.

We conclude the series with a look at the Winnipeg Jets- who added two new players to their prospect pool this week.

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Tyrel Bauer

Heavyweight defenceman Tyrel Bauer proved to be a menacing figure on the Manitoba Moose blueline in 2023-24. Standing 6-foot-3, 207 pounds, Bauer put up a pair of goals and five assists in his second season of professional hockey while racking up 83 penalty minutes in 56 games. The Cochrane, Alta. product is known for his thunderous hits and has been training with famed NHL enforcer Georges Laraque over the summer. Bauer, who captained the Seattle Thunderbirds from 2020-22, was drafted by Winnipeg in the sixth round of the 2020 NHL Entry Draft before signing his entry-level contract in 2022. He spent his entire junior career with Seattle, helping the T-Birds clinch the Western Conference Championship in his final season.

Let's get crazy 🤪

We mic'd up defenceman Tyrel Bauer at practice! #GoMooseGo pic.twitter.com/5vueAq9u6b

— Manitoba Moose (@ManitobaMoose) October 22, 2023

Brad Lambert

Skilled forward Brad Lambert got his first taste of NHL action in 2023-24 and will gun for a permanent position with the Winnipeg Jets in the season ahead. The Jets’ 2022 first-round pick made his NHL debut on April 18, 2024, earning an assist on fellow CHL graduate Gabe Vilardi’s first-period strike. Lambert led the Moose in points with 55 while finishing third in goals (21) and second in assists (34). The 20-year-old kicked off his first full professional season with an impressive seven-game points streak that saw him pot five goals and five assists. He ended up snagging a spot on the AHL All-Rookie Team. Born in Lahti, Finland, Lambert put up 38 points in 26 games with the Seattle Thunderbirds in 2022-23 before erupting for 26 points in the postseason as Seattle captured its second WHL Championship.

First NHL point for Brad Lambert! 🚨#NHLStats: https://t.co/6mWUpFEQV3 pic.twitter.com/ZsANJlNIe3

— NHL (@NHL) April 19, 2024

Connor Levis

Coming off a season that saw him put up four points at the Memorial Cup with Kamloops, Connor Levis was a hot commodity at the WHL Trade Deadline in 2024. The Vancouver Giants picked up the 6-foot-2, 195-pound winger in January as the team climbed the B.C. Division rankings. Levis was nearly a point-per-game player with Vancouver, tallying 14 goals (including a game-winner and three powerplay strikes) and 13 assists for 27 points in 28 games. Overall, the Vancouver, B.C. product tied second on the squad with a total of 24 goals in 65 games, in addition to 31 assists (third on the Giants) and 55 points (fourth). The 19-year-old, who was selected in the seventh round of the 2023 NHL Draft, made his pro debut with the Moose after his junior season concluded, finishing with a +1 rating in two games.

The goal that took us to the OT 👿

Connor Levis at it again!#GiantNewEra | #GoJetsGo pic.twitter.com/pfGgo8CKRD

— Vancouver Giants (@WHLGiants) January 29, 2024

Markus Loponen

Fresh off of being drafted by Winnipeg in the fifth round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, Finnish forward Markus Loponen is preparing to come to North America to suit up for the Victoria Royals in 2024-25. The 6-foot-1, 285-pound forward was chosen 23rd overall in the 2024 CHL Import Draft. Loponen, 18, suited up for 45 games with Karpat U20 of the U20 SM-sarja league, stringing together 25 goals and 29 assists for 54 points. He was named the league’s Rookie of the Year and led all players with a +40 rating.

Last week, he was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets, today, the Royals selected Markus Loponen with the 23rd overall selection in the CHL Import Draft.
 
Here’s some of highlights from his time in Finland 🔥 pic.twitter.com/On9BcgZnTU

— Victoria Royals (@victoriaroyals) July 3, 2024

Chaz Lucius

Former first-round pick Chaz Lucius was dealt another wave of adversity in 2023-24 as the sniper underwent season-ending ankle surgery in January. The 21-year-old ended up with two goals and 11 assists for 13 points in 17 games in his second shortened stint with the Moose but was able to hit the ice at Jets Development Camp over the summer. Lucius, from Lawrence, Kan., started the 2022-23 season with the Moose before joining the Portland Winterhawks for the remainder of the year. A 6-foot-1, 185-pound forward netted five goals and 15 assists in just six games before suffering another season-ending injury. He previously represented the United States at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championship, scoring five times for the Americans in seven outings en route to a bronze medal.

Chaz gets us on the board!

🚨 : Chaz Lucius
🍎 : Nikita Chibrikov pic.twitter.com/6Qz0MoumxF

— Manitoba Moose (@ManitobaMoose) October 15, 2023

Thomas Milic

Former WHL Goaltender of the Year Thomas Milic inked a three-year, entry-level contract with the Jets after a strong showing in his first professional hockey campaign. The 21-year-old began the season with the ECHL’s Norfolk Admirals, but after recording his first professional shutout, winning ECHL Goaltender of the Week and a berth in the ECHL All-Star Game, the Moose called the young netminder up to the AHL. The 6-foot, 180-pound netminder went 19-9-2 with the Moose, putting up a 2.72 goals-against average, a .900 save percentage and a shutout. He won 14 of his final 19 games for Manitoba to snag AHL Player of the Week honours in mid-March. Hailing from Coquitlam, B.C., Milic also represented Canada at the 2023 Spengler Cup, suiting up for one game and stopping 16 of 18 shots. Milic was selected by the Jets in the fifth round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft after a breakout season with Seattle. He earned the Del Wilson Memorial Trophy as the WHL Goaltender of the Year after recording a league-leading 2.08 goals-against average and .928 save percentage while amassing a 27-3-1-1 record. He was also named WHL Playoff MVP as the Thunderbirds lifted the Ed Chynoweth Cup that spring.

Start your Monday off with a look at Thomas Milic's new mask for the 2024-25 season 🎨 pic.twitter.com/Qn3NZBSrlT

— Manitoba Moose (@ManitobaMoose) August 19, 2024

Brayden Yager

Welp, hello to the newest member of the Jets’ prospect pool! WHL Champion and Pittsburgh’s 2023 14th overall pick Brayden Yager was acquired in a major trade on August 22. This season, the Moose Jaw Warriors star helped his team clinch its first-ever WHL Championship, scored the franchise’s first goal at the Memorial Cup, took home WHL Most Sportsmanlike honours for a second-straight year, made the WHL East Division Second All-Star Team and put pen to paper on a three-year, entry-level deal with Pittsburgh. In the regular season, the 6-foot, 170-pound forward set new career highs with 35 goals (including six game-winners) and 60 assists for 95 points and a +19 rating. Yager recorded three or more points on 14 occasions, highlighted by a hat trick against Swift Current in November and a monster six-assist night against Regina in March. The 19-year-old finished third among all WHLers in playoff scoring with 11 goals and 16 assists for 27 points and a +10 rating in 20 games, bolstered by an overtime winner in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Championship against the Saskatoon Blades and two multi-point efforts in Games 2 and 3 of the WHL Championship Series. While Moose Jaw would fall in the Memorial Cup semifinal, Yager, a former WHL Rookie of the Year, would be named to the tournament’s All-Star Team after tallying six points (3G-3A) in four games.

YAGER BOMB 💣 pic.twitter.com/koXiJXdfL5

— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) August 22, 2024