Jets announce development camp after draft, prospects eye Moose path
Winnipeg’s prospect camp opens June 29 with off-ice testing first, then open practices as seven new draft picks join Moose hopefuls like Lambert and Barlow.
The Winnipeg Jets will bring their prospects back to hockey for all centre from Monday, June 29 through Friday, July 3, and the schedule already points beyond summer scrimmages. Monday is reserved for off-ice testing, Tuesday’s on-ice work begins at 9:30 a.m. CT, and every practice is open to the public, giving fans their first clear look at how the latest draft class fits into the organization’s next wave.
The timing makes the camp feel like an early Moose audit. Winnipeg announced its 2026 draft class two days before camp, a seven-player haul led by Swedish centre Viggo Björck, selected eighth overall. That matters in Manitoba because the American Hockey League roster already carries several Jets prospects who are either in the system or pressing toward real minutes, including Brad Lambert, Colby Barlow, Brayden Yager, Elias Salomonsson, Thomas Milic and Domenic DiVincentiis. Lambert and Barlow look closest to turning camp into meaningful AHL responsibility, while Salomonsson, Yager and the goaltenders help define the next layer of depth the Moose will try to shape.
Kevin Cheveldayoff has long framed development camp as more than a straight tryout, calling it a week for player orientation and education. The modern version includes off-ice work on nutrition, mental health and handling pressure, a structure that reflects how Winnipeg now handles the gap between junior hockey, college hockey and the pro grind in Manitoba. That approach is especially relevant in a system built around a draft and develop model, where the first campus-style introduction can matter as much as a few flashy drills.
Scott Arniel and the coaching staff will still use the ice to measure habits that translate to the AHL, with puck retrievals and board play among the fundamentals that reveal who can survive faster, heavier pro shifts. Jimmy Roy said in 2024 that meeting draft picks in person is where the relationship starts, and that dynamic still drives these camps: the roster card matters, but so does how quickly a teenager absorbs instruction, handles structure and adjusts to the pace of a pro environment.
That pipeline has already produced NHL regulars after stops in the AHL and Moose system, including Kyle Connor, Adam Lowry, Cole Perfetti, Mark Scheifele, Josh Morrissey, Dylan Samberg and Connor Hellebuyck. Winnipeg’s latest camp is built to identify the next name that can follow that path, starting with a week of testing, teaching and open practices in Manitoba.
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