Jets' Playoff Odds Crater to Single Digits Amid Nine-Game Skid

A team that won the Presidents' Trophy two seasons ago is now fighting to stay relevant in the Western Conference playoff race. The Winnipeg Jets' postseason odds have collapsed to the single digits amid a nine-game losing streak, and the franchise made a notable roster move this week, placing forward Brad Lambert on waivers.

A Nine-Game Freefall

Winnipeg hasn't won a game since October 13, a stretch that has dropped the Jets to 4-8-3 on the young season. The low point came in a 7-0 blowout loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, a result that triggered fresh scrutiny of the roster and coaching staff. According to MoneyPuck, the Jets' playoff odds have fallen to roughly 6.6 percent — among the worst marks in the league — even though Winnipeg remains just a handful of points out of a playoff position in a tightly bunched Western Conference.

Head coach Scott Arniel has faced direct questions about his job security during the skid, telling reporters it's "not on my mind." Captain Adam Lowry has reportedly signaled that changes are coming if the losing continues, and pundits around the league have openly debated whether a coaching change is next.

Brad Lambert Placed on Waivers

Amid the slide, Winnipeg placed forward Brad Lambert on waivers on November 3 to clear a roster spot for a call-up from the AHL's Manitoba Moose. Lambert, the 30th overall pick in the 2022 draft, has struggled to find a role this season: he has just one assist in 11 games, was pointless in his previous five outings, and had been a healthy scratch in three of Winnipeg's last five games. In 42 career NHL games, he has three goals and nine points, a modest return compared to the 106 points he's produced across 173 AHL games with Manitoba.

A Stunning Fall From the Presidents' Trophy

The losing streak is especially jarring given where this franchise stood not long ago. Arniel's first season behind the Jets' bench, 2024-25, produced a franchise-best 56-22-4 record and the Presidents' Trophy as the NHL's top regular-season team. The follow-up was a disaster: Winnipeg finished 35-35-12 in 2025-26 and missed the playoffs entirely, becoming the first Presidents' Trophy winner in league history to miss the postseason the very next year.

This season was supposed to be a reset. Instead, Winnipeg enters November already needing to climb out of a hole, with the long shadow of last year's collapse hanging over the current skid.

The Hellebuyck Factor

The backdrop to all of this is the departure of franchise goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, whom the Jets traded to the New Jersey Devils in late October after he requested a move out of Winnipeg. General manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said he was "very comfortable" with the return, which included forward Nick Bjugstad and draft picks, but replacing a three-time Vezina Trophy winner in net was always going to be difficult — and the early results bear that out. Hellebuyck is set to return to Winnipeg with the Devils on November 10, a date that now carries even more weight given how the Jets' season has unraveled since the trade.

For the full breakdown of that deal, read our coverage of the Hellebuyck trade to New Jersey. For context on how the postseason field comes together, see our NHL playoff format explainer. Follow the rest of the season in our NHL coverage.

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