The Real Reason Connor Hellebuyck Wants Out Of Winnipeg.

The current predicament surrounding Winnipeg Jets star goaltender Connor Hellebuyck has stunned fans around the National Hockey League, largely due to the lengths Hellebuyck has been willing to go to in order to force his way out of Winnipeg. Hellebuyck went public with his trade demand earlier this summer when his agent left no doubt about Hellebuyck's intent:

Hellebuyck Doesn't Want Out Of Canada.

While there have been reports suggesting that the American-born Hellebuyck simply wants out of Canada, it sounds like that may not be the case. On Sunday, Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun not only revealed that Hellebuyck would reportedly be willing to remain within the country to play for at least 2 Canadian teams, but also hinted at the reason that the once proud Winnipeg Jet suddenly wants out of Winnipeg.

From Simmons:

If he were dealt to Edmonton or Montreal, he would report in a minute. He wants out of Winnipeg, not because the Jets are lousy, but because his family apparently has been treated poorly by the local community.

Oilers Trade Seems Out Of Reach.

The Edmonton Oilers would certainly make a great deal of sense given their well documented struggles at the goaltender position. The Oilers acquired Frederik Andersen in the offseason but the 36 year old netminder has struggled with injuries in recent years and will be starting his first season with the Oilers on injured reserve after suffering an offseason injury. They've also got veteran goaltender Tristan Jarry but he's coming off an abysmal first season with the Oilers, one in which he recorded a 3.86 goals against average and a .858 save percentage.

The real problem with this potential outcome though is that the Oilers have just a little over $1 million in available cap space which would make this an exceedingly difficult trade to pull off.

Will The Canadiens Go Big Game Hunting?

The Canadiens on the other hand have more flexibility with a little under $3 million in available cap space and likely would welcome an upgrade over goaltender Samuel Montembeault who came into the previous season the presumed starter but lost his net to an impressive rookie campaign from goaltender Jakub Dobes.

Getting out from Montembeault's cap hit of $3.15 million would go a long way towards making room and with Dobes' extension not set to kick in for another season it would give Kent Hughes and Jeff Gorton plenty of time to make room, especially with players like Kirby Dach, Phillip Danault, Josh Anderson and even recently signed free agent forward Chris Kreider all coming into this season on expiring contracts.