Tkachuk faced the music, while Hellebuyck stays backstage

For this one and only time, I will tip my cap to Brady Tkachuk.

There is nothing quite like returning to the city you once called home and being greeted with roars of boos and ruthless chants. The same people who supported you and filled the arena with your jerseys have now duct-taped their jerseys to read "traitor" and are ready to seize any opportunity to voice their disdain. 

Although Detroit Red Wings centre and former captain Dylan Larkin faced some backlash in the team’s home opener and first home game, he took the easy way out and has chosen to stay home since the Red Wings’ shootout win over the Edmonton Oilers on October 26.  He played just one home game in front of his former fan base since requesting a trade in the off-season. 

Quinn Hughes got mixed reactions in his return game in Vancouver. Some fans wanted more for their former captain and accepted the inevitable fate of their former captain.  

Tkachuk is the only American-born player to force a trade and truly face the brutality from his former fan base. Connor Hellebuyck and his new team, the New Jersey Devils, are set to visit Winnipeg for the first time since the goaltender ended his holdout and accepted a trade to end his tenure with the Jets. Hellebuyck, however, won’t get anything close to the Tkachuk treatment because he'll be sidelined for the game. 

Hellebuyck was just another domino to fall in the chain of players who forced their teams into a trade. In the off-season, the Michigan native went public with his trade request and doubled down on his wish to leave Winnipeg by missing all of training camp and the start of the season. It wasn’t until his trade to New Jersey that Hellebuyck suited up for his first game of the season on October 27. 

Workload management and winning probabilities

Jets fans had November 10 circled on their calendar, as he was set to return to the Canada Life Center. Sadly, they’ll have to wait another year to greet their 2012 NHL draft pick. The Devils announced last night that Hellebuyck won’t be the starting netminder when the Devils visit the Jets, citing load management and win probabilities. This was a rather odd statement for the organization to make two days before the game, and their reasoning was even more strange. 

Workload management and Hellebuyck don’t really go together because in Winnipeg, he was the number one guy for a decade who played 60+ games a season. Surely, he can handle six consecutive starts. With five straight wins to start the season, Hellebuyck seems to be in fine form. 

After the 4-0 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs last night, Hellebuyck expressed his disappointment and said he insisted on playing. So if that’s true, is the organization trying to protect their goalie from the well-deserved noise? Is Jake Allen really going to give them a statistically better chance of winning?

Regardless of the reasoning, two things are certain: Jets fans deserve to let Hellebuyck hear it, and Hellebuyck can handle a sixth straight start. It's unfair to rob the fans in “Winterpeg” of a moment they’ve circled on their calendars and bought tickets for. He spent over a decade in Manitoba, and the fans who bought his jerseys and rallied behind him deserve to be heard. If he’s good to play, he should be playing and it shouldn’t be an organizational decision. Tkachuk wasn’t spared the hostility from the fan base, and Hellebuyck shouldn't be either. 

This was rather disappointing for Jets fans who want closure. Senators fans got their moment that they will cherish for a long time, and Jets fans will have to wait for theirs. Tkachuk faced the music, but it seems as if Hellebuyck won't even take the stage.

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