Has Byfuglien had a change of heart?

It’s been weeks since we’ve heard any sort of update in the Dustin Byfuglien situation with the Winnipeg Jets.

What we all know is that Byfuglien had been suspended by the Jets for failing to report to training camp. It was reported that Byfuglilen wasn’t sure if he wanted to play and was taking his time in making a decision. 

Then, TSN insider Bob McKenzie reported that Byfuglien had undergone ankle surgery without the team’s consent. This is where things get interesting…

Big Buff has apparently been undergoing treatment to rehab his injury following surgery and the Jets have been involved. 

According to Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun, that tiny bit of communication between the player and the team might be enough to mend the damage between the two sides.

Check it out:

Not because the hulking defenceman is in the early stages of a rehab program following his self-elected ankle surgery back in October. That’s just standard fare when it comes to the healing process.

But it’s the bit that said that, despite Byfuglien’s rehabilitation process being guided by an independent medical staff, there’s at least some communication, reportedly ongoing, about his overall treatment.

A morsel, perhaps. But a juicy one. And that’s where the latest development in his peculiar ordeal gets rather interesting.

Hmmmmm… I don’t know… Big Buff seems like the kind of guy that does what he wants, when he wants. He’s not waiting around for the Jets to give him a cookie so he feels better about his lot in life. He’s either going to play or he’s not… 

Billeck though argues that sudden communication between Byfuglien and the Jets means one of three things:

1. Byfuglien wants to play hockey again, as early as this season — the end of February or early March based on the timeline to recover fully from his surgery.

2. He wants to get paid. This is the penultimate year of his five-year, $38-million deal. He’s owed $6 million next year and could still cash in on that, in Winnipeg, or elsewhere. And perhaps showing interest in rehabbing helps his arbitration case.

3. He is increasingly less confident that he has a foot to stand on (no pun intended) in front of an arbitrator because, at the end of the day, he had previously declared himself to be healthy on his season-ending medical report. With that finally sinking in, Byfuglien is ready to cut his losses and salvage what he can.

Again… maybe? Honestly, I think that Byfuglien is simply taking things as they come. If suddenly he wakes up, his ankle is fully healed and he feels like playing some hockey, he’ll do exactly that. If he feels like making a dent on the living room sofa for the rest of his life, he’ll do exactly that.