In addition to a frustrating loss Wednesday night, what Winnipeg Jets fans witnessed was perhaps a glimpse into the future — a future with Brad Lambert as a full-time member of the team and a lineup without Nikolaj Ehlers.
After being recalled from the Manitoba Moose on Tuesday morning, Lambert skated in place of Ehlers, who is out with a lower-body injury. As one might expect, Lambert didn’t look out of place at all.
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His speed, vision and offensive skills were certainly on display, but he also was responsible defensively — and in the Jets’ fourth consecutive loss on Tuesday, where blame and responsibility could be shouldered by many on the team, Lambert was not one of them.
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Since the start of the season there have been many discussions about the contract situation of Ehlers. His expiring deal has led to much speculation and, to date, it doesn’t appear like the two sides are aggressively trying to get an extension done.
In fact, it seems far from that and the prospect of Ehlers playing elsewhere next year more likely as this season progresses. As such, it was easy to see the irony last night in Lambert being inserted into Winnipeg’s top six forward group, assuming a role on the power play and soaking up 15 minutes of ice time — all in Ehlers’ absence.
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Now, how long the soon-to-be 21-year-old Lambert remains up with the Jets will probably depend on how long Ehlers is out, but in the business of hockey, replacing one dynamic forward with another — albeit a younger and significantly cheaper one — does appear to be what might be at play here for next season.
And what last night provided was possibly an early glimpse into what the Jets might look like in the not-too-distant future, one with Brad Lambert on the roster full-time, while at the same time a future without Nikolaj Ehlers on the roster at all.
