Dustin Byfuglien’s situation with the Winnipeg Jets has quietly simmered throughout the season, but it now appears that both the player and the team are on the verge of parting ways for good.
According to Frank Seravalli of TSN, the Jets and Byfuglien are working towards terminating his contract, which would not only end his suspension but also resolve the grievance he filed against the team in November. Byfuglien’s grievance argued that he deserved to be paid while recovering from a legitimate hockey injury, as he was suspended without pay for failing to report to training camp. The team was previously unable to void his contract due to the ongoing grievance, which had no formal hearing date set.
The 34-year-old Byfuglien has not been on the ice since undergoing ankle surgery in October. Although he reportedly began rehabilitating the injury in mid-December, his future in hockey remains uncertain. If the contract is terminated, it would free up $7.6 million in cap space for the Jets and make Byfuglien an unrestricted free agent.
Byfuglien has been a key figure for the Jets over eight seasons, scoring 102 goals and amassing 363 points in 528 games, while averaging over 24-and-a-half minutes of ice time per game.
Despite his absence, the Jets have remained competitive, currently sitting three points behind the second wild card spot in the Western Conference.
