NHL Insider drops BOMBSHELL on MASSIVE trade...

An NHL insider drops a massive bombshell on a trade that sends Kirill Marchenko to the Winnipeg Jets. In this video, we're going to break down everything about this report, talk about some mock trades, talk about how he fits into this lineup, and so much more. You should not want to miss this episode of Winnipeg Jets Digest, but before we dive into everything here, just want to say we're on the road for 2,000 subscribers here before the season starts. So if you're new here, you want to stay up to date on the latest news around your Winnipeg Jets, where you're home for it here on YouTube, subscribe below, hit that subscribe button, and it's completely free to do so. But with that said, let's dive into this crazy report again from Elliott Freeman talking about the Winnipeg Jets potentially trading for Kirill Marchenko. Let's have a look here. According to Elliott Freeman on his 32 Thoughts podcast, the Winnipeg Jets and the Columbus Blue Jackets have discussed a Kirill Marchenko deal. This is crazy. I was not expecting to see this this morning when I opened up Twitter, but I love it. I think Kirill Marchenko really fits the mold of this team. I mean, he's kind of uses his bigger frame to create space and has a very, very accurate spot and a shot that scores him a lot of goals. He's a guy who creates a lot of offense and a guy who could really revamp the offense of the Winnipeg Jets this season. And just looking at how he did last year, he did have 67 points, 27 goals for the assistant. He was averaging about 18 or almost 19 minutes a night with 218 shots and 23 power play points. He was lethal last year. He was so good. He's a guy who's not afraid to, you know, lay a hit every now and then, block a few shots. He's a guy who can get it done all over the ice and his offensive talent is just amazing. Just last season was when we got to see him kind of break out when he had 74 points, 31 goals, 43 assists. I guess that was two seasons ago now. And then last year was kind of on the same pace, played a few or less games, so he probably could have got there again. I think this guy is a guy who could easily hit 75 points with the Winnipeg Jets this season and I really like it. And you know, talking about where he kind of, his contract sits, he's in the last year of his RFA deal at 3.85 million. It's a very affordable contract for the Winnipeg Jets and looking at what some extension kind of predictions are, they kind of have him at a five-year deal where 10.15 million. He is like, what, 26 years old now, so that deal will bring him to at least 31. I do think I see him around more of a Drake Batherson number at a 10.75 and I think that would be a steal of a deal for this Winnipeg Jets team, getting a guy who's going to produce a lot of offense for you. And in a tough division, you really need to get a player like this that really gives you a little bit of an edge to get back into the playoffs this season and I really do like this trade. So let's talk about, you know, what's some trade options we could see for Koval Marchenko. Obviously the first one, I'm going to include Connor Hellebuck, the second one I'm not. So let's have a look at this first trade option. I have the Blue Jackets receiving Connor Hellebuck, but the Jets receiving Marchenko, Merce Lincolns, and a top 10 protected first. I think this is a great deal. Personally, I do think that for the Jets, obviously you get Merce Lincolns, who's kind of looking for a redemption arc and he can kind of get it here with Stuart Skinner in Winnipeg having a great tandem there. And obviously you get Kirill Marchenko in this, the guy who's going to score a lot of goals for you, going to set up, you know, a lot of great scoring opportunities and high danger scoring chances and revamp your power play, which is great as well. And you obviously get you a top 10 protected first here where I, you know, if it is, it turns into a first, a conditional first in 2028. So I do think this is a great trade for the Jets. Maybe the Blue Jackets fans maybe might not like this as much, but I do think obviously bringing in a guy like Marchenko and Merce Lincolns will be great for this team. Obviously, the big question mark around this is will Conor Hellbuck waive his no trade clause to see this happen? But who knows? He could. But, you know, that's kind of where the deal would kind of die, in my opinion, is if he does not waive his no move clause to go there. I just kind of want to take a look at how the team would look like if this trade did go through. I do have Marchenko playing on the second line with Viggo Bjork and Gabe Valerdi, and I think that would just be a lights out line. Can you imagine having Viggo Bjork with his playmaking vision and hockey IQ paired up with two great goal scorers, two 30 goal scorers in Valerdi and Marchenko? These guys would have a monster season with Viggo Bjork orchestrating this offense through the forward core. Obviously, Valerdi can set up players as well, and Marchenko is a great passer as well. I think three of these guys could really feed off each other and would really become maybe one of the most underrated second lines in the entire NHL if this trade was to go through. I absolutely love it. And with Merz Lincolns, I do just kind of want to take a look at his stats. Like I said, he's looking for a redemption erk, an 8.83 sabre cinch. We've kind of seen, you know, Stuart Skinner trying to look for a redemption erk he got in his first preseason game, and now we kind of get a guy like Merz Lincolns who is looking for the same, right? So I do like Merz Lincolns. I think he still has a lot in the tank and a lot to give, and if we just take a look at his career stats, he has been a great goaltender. You know, he's been a guy who his first three years, he looked like a monster, 9.23, 9.16, 9.07. Then the last kind of four years, it's kind of fallen off, but this is a guy who has it. He just needs to change the scenery and have a really good defense in front of him here in Winnipeg, and I really do think he can revamp his career, run the tandem here with Stuart Skinner. Let's take a look at the second trade option here that I kind of cooked up for you guys. This one doesn't include Hellebuck, but I have a Lambert, Brayden Yeager, and a top 10 projected first going to the Blue Jackets for Marchenko. I do think this is a great deal. Obviously, we're losing Brayden Yeager here, which, you know, he's supposed to be a great center for us going forward, and I like what I've seen from him out of the preseason, but when you trade him and Lambert and a first for a guy who's going to get you probably 75, 80 points this season with 30 goals, I definitely think you let that go because the Jets don't want to go into a rebuild. They still want to win with Scheifele and Connor and the guys that are there, so getting Marchenko in really helps them revamp the offense and really helps them make a push for getting back into the playoffs and ultimately going on a run and trying to win a Stanley Cup. So, I really like this deal personally. Just taking a look at this trade again, and we don't see Lambert in the lineup here. I kind of have Isaac Rosen playing on the third line with Lowry and Niederreiter in this. Niederreiter had a great game, I believe it was last night in the preseason, so I think he draws into this lineup now. Then we have Marchenko with Bjork and obviously Valerdi. You know how I feel about that. I absolutely love it. I do think that these guys would really play great together, and obviously going into this season where we really need to kind of have a good year because, you know, Marchenko is almost 34. Like, we're kind of an aging group at this point, and, you know, we still have some young studs like our, obviously, guy like Vigo, Bjork, and guys like this that we have throughout our lineup. But right now, it's kind of, we're in a weird gray area where Kevin Chaldea, with Conor Hellebuck requesting a trade, really needs to, you know, make a decision on whether he wants to sell or really wants to go for it, and I think he wants to go for it. And I do think if the Jets traded for Marchenko, I do think Hellebuck would really start to rethink his trade, his request for a trade, and maybe come back. And obviously, it would be awkward in the locker room with him coming back, but if he sees that Sheveldayov's ready to gear up and try to win one, I think Hellebuck would be willing to come back to this if he can't get a trade done for him. So it would be interesting to see him come back. I know a lot of Jets fans just want to see him rot at this point, but you can't let a goaltender like that sit out if he wanted to come back. I think the locker room would invite him back with open arms, and I think the Jets fans would as well. Obviously, it sucks to hear one of your favorite players request a trade, but if Kevin Sheveldayov shows the players in the locker room that he's willing to put it all on the line for them to win this year, I think Hellebuck would rethink this and rescind his trade request and try to go win a cup this year. So I'd love to hear your guys' thoughts on that down below in the comment section. Do you think this is something that Sheveldayov might do? Do you think that Hellebuck would come back? Do you like Markchenko in a Jets uniform? Because I absolutely love it. Let me know what you guys think down below in the comment section while you're there. Leave a like, subscribe to the channel, appreciate all the support we've been getting here, and we're not going to stop. Appreciate you guys, all your support. We're going to be here all season long, so hit that subscribe button. But as always, I'm your host, KC, and we'll see you guys on the ice.