Probably a good chance Kevin Cheveldayoff is the GM until 2029

Cheveldayoff is in the final year of his four-year contract. He managed to trade away two problem players, Pierre-Luc Dubois and Rutger McGroarty, and early on it looks like he has won both of those trades. He has had great returns with draft picks, including Jets hopeful Brad Lambert, who had a solid season as a 20-year-old with the Manitoba Moose last year, scoring 21 goals and 55 points in 65 games with the Jets' AHL team.

Even though the trades for Sean Monahan and Tyler Toffoli didn't work out in the long run, Cheveldayoff did swing for the fences, hoping they would be the keys to playoff success.

The lack of playoff success is evident in Cheveldayoff's tenure, but he is putting together a solid regular-season team that will have its moment in the sun sooner rather than later. Overall, Cheveldayoff's actions in the past have led the team to regular-season success with players that Jets fans love.

To start the season, the Jets' forward group will more or less be the same as it was at the start of the 2023-24 season, with the exception of Brad Lambert, who will most likely join the forward group. Hopefully, the development of Lambert will address the Jets' second-line center problem. If not, Vladislav Namestnikov will be the Jets' second-line center to start the season.

The Jets' bottom six will again look much the same as it did last season and has probably taken a step forward as they have had nearly a full season to gel together. Scott Arniel could play with the lines, but who is going to break up Nino Niederreiter, Adam Lowry, and Mason Appleton?

Jets' defense still has that outstanding top pair of Josh Morrissey and Dylan DeMelo. All the hard work that Dylan Samberg put in has paid off, as he will be a top-six defender, alongside Neal Pionk. Finally, Collin Miller and a rotation of Logan Stanley and Ville Heinola will round out the defense.

The one area where the Jets took a step back was with their backup goaltender. Kaapo Kahkonen had a rough season last year with the New Jersey Devils and the San Jose Sharks, with a 3.64 goals-against average and an .898 save percentage.

The backup goaltenders could be the difference between a wildcard playoff spot and being a top-three team in the division. The real question is whether he will sign another contract to stay in Winnipeg and continue as general manager in one of the hardest cities to recruit players.