Michael Wilbon isn’t exactly known as a hockey pundit, but he had plenty to say after Connor Hellebuyck went public with his trade request from the Winnipeg Jets.
Hellebuyck privately asked to be dealt several months ago, but after the Jets failed to make a move, the three-time Vezina Trophy winner had his agent publish the request on social media last Thursday. The goaltender signed a seven-year, $59.5 million extension with Winnipeg back in October 2023. The deal kicked in during the 2024-25 season and still has five years remaining.
Connor Hellebuyck slammed
The trade request didn’t sit well with Wilbon, a longtime ESPN personality best known for co-hosting Pardon The Interruption alongside Tony Kornheiser, who addressed it on ESPN’s PTI.
“Basically, he’s saying, ‘Oh, we need better players.’ Well, then be one of them, dude. Then be better,” Wilbon said. “They gave you the security you wanted, the money you wanted. They rewarded you. You signed the deal. Can you not count from three to eight? You don’t know what that is? Unbelievable.”
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He wasn’t finished there.
“I would call him in. I’d call him and his agent, and I’d say, ‘You know, we love you. We signed you to this deal. You want a trade? Go to hell. We’re not trading you unless…'” Wilbon continued.
“The thing I would do now is if I was old and crotchety, felt like get off my lawn, I would trade him to whatever outpost I could. If he could be relegated, I would do that. That’s about the only thing I would do for Hellebuyck. The nerve. You signed this deal that gave you everything you wanted, and now you want out because you’re not good enough? Please.”
For Hellebuyck, the situation is far from simple. With his trade request now public, it becomes tougher for the Jets to get equal value in a deal. And after years of contending in Winnipeg, his departure could mark a real turning point for the franchise.
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