Rutger McGroarty’s brief stint in the Winnipeg Jets organization has come to an end.
After expressing reservations about his future with Winnipeg earlier this off-season, McGroarty was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday in a one-for-one deal that saw Brayden Yager sent the other way.
The young forwards were top prospects on their respective teams, with McGroarty, 20, selected 14th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft and Yager, 19, taken 14th overall in 2023.
Speaking to media hours after the trade, Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff addressed what led to the team parting ways with McGroarty before his NHL career has even begun.
“He said that when he got to development camp here, he put the jersey on, it became real, and it just didn’t feel right at the time. And it culminated, you know, with that,” said Cheveldayoff.
“So again, if there’s a specific reason, Rutger hasn’t told us.”
McGroarty, who plays in the NCAA for the University of Michigan, announced he would be returning to the Wolverines lineup for the 2024-25 season in April. It had been reported that Winnipeg had offered the forward a contract to turn pro around the same time.
Cheveldayoff confirmed that the two sides had discussed signing McGroarty to his entry-level contract at the end of his 2023-24 season with Michigan.
“… [We] had the conversation with the agent around the end of the year about signing. We were going to have a Zoom call with his family about the different options and processes [but] they determined that they didn’t need that. He was going back to school and we said, ‘OK, well we support you.'”
But while things might not have worked out between Winnipeg and McGroarty, Cheveldayoff expressed his excitement about the Jets’ new addition, Yager, and his fit with the organization.
The Saskatoon native has spent his entire junior career with the WHL’s Moose Jaw Warriors. He recorded 35 goals and 60 assists in 57 games this past season, along with five points in five games for Canada at the 2024 World Junior Championship.
Yager signed his entry-level deal with the Penguins in July.
“If I look at what we’ve gotten returned here, I think it’s a player that fits very well into our organization,” said Cheveldayoff. “I think that if you look at the prospects that we have coming, you’ve got a player like (Colby) Barlow that plays wing that [is] going to be complemented exceptionally well by a player like Yager at centre. So, I think it gives us a lot more depth amongst the organization.
“Brayden is a key part of a young team, a team that went far in the playoffs last year, [and he] obviously has World Junior experience. So we’re just excited to have him in our fold here and looking forward to seeing him in a couple weeks.”
Cheveldayoff later added, “It will be different, I’m sure, for him changing organizations. … I assume it’s a whirlwind for him. Today [when] I talked to him, I could say he was pretty excited. You know as a kid from the prairies, to get to play for a prairie team, I think is something he was pretty proud of.”