The Winnipeg Jets have hit the ice for their first session of training camp – all players but Cole Perfetti, that is.
The 22-year-old forward has not been skating in Winnipeg with the rest of his teammates, as he remains as an unsigned restricted free agent.
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With his contract expiring on June 30, Perfetti’s camp and the front office staff of the Jets have been unable to find middle ground on an appropriate pay-day and length of term.
Despite Perfetti appearing at the NHL Media Tour in early-September, he still hasn’t put pen to paper on a new deal for the coming 2024-25 season and onward.
Coming off an up-and-down 2023-24 season that saw a five-game goal streak as well as four goals in a span of three games in earlier stages of the year, things dried up in the second half.
So much so that Perfetti found himself sitting as a healthy scratch in the press box more often than not. He only dressed in one postseason game, the Jets’ final contest, a 6-3 loss to Colorado.
It is safe to say that Perfetti and former head coach Rick Bowness and did not entirely see eye to eye.
With Perfetti in need of a new contract in order to begin skating again, he has not been with the rest of his teammates at events or training camp so far this fall.
Recently, fellow RFA Dawson Mercer signed a three-year, $12 million contract with the New Jersey Devils, making Perfetti one of the only RFAs left to re-up with his club.
The Mercer contract will be a benefit to Perfetti as the Jets forward out-produced Mercer – who is also a fellow 22-year-old – last season, however, Mercer skated in 82 games each of the past three seasons.
Mercer had just 33 points and a -26 rating last season, to which Perfetti produced 38 points and a +13 rating.
Mercer, however, put up 98 points over his first two seasons, including 56 in 2022-23. Perfetti had 37 in the same timespan and 30 points in 2022-23. He has skated in 140 NHL games to Mercer’s 246.
Perfetti has operated at a .54 point-per-game pace over his NHL career, while Mercer is just one percentage point lower – despite over 100 more games played.
With roughly $5.78 million in cap space, Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff should look to finalize an agreement between the club and Perfetti sooner rather than later, in order to get his expected second-line winger up to speed before he misses more time at camp than necessary.
In saying all the right things, Perfetti has made it clear that he is interested in remaining with Winnipeg, unlike many other problematic players over the years. Appearing as the Jets’ representative on the annual Media Tour and speaking highly of the organization in his availability does prove the sort of character True North Sports + Entertainment is after.
With a change in head coaches for 2024-25 and onward, Perfetti may have the mindset of entering with a clean slate. His new bench boss Scott Arniel certainly believes so, and is known to many as a more understanding and open minded coach than that of his predecessor.
With the Mercer contract now officially signed and training camp fully underway, it shouldn’t be long until positive news on the Perfetti front comes down the pipeline.
