Kevin Cheveldayoff made a smart move and did not pay too much to acquire the much Ballyhooed Daniel Winnik, instead going back to the Carolina Hurricanes and acquiring Jiri Tlusty. Tlusty is will most likely slot into Mathieu Perreault's spot on left wing until Perreault returns from injury. After Perreault returns, Tlusty can shift down to the lineup and play on Adam Lowry's wing and replace the departed Evander Kane.
While Tlusty is not a player without faults, he has the ability to score goals and that is something that the Jets need. While the Jets have not suffered possession wise, they have lost many skilled players to injury in a short period of time. Giving up a third round pick and a fifth/sixth round pick (fifth if they make the playoffs, sixth if they do not) for a serviceable top 9 player that fill as required and be able to play meaningful minutes on the third line.
Who can fans expect from Jiri Tlusty?
As you can see, Tlusty is not a fantastic player that is going to push the Jets over the edge. Instead, he is a good player who can help make a difference in lower line match-ups. I reached out to Corey Sznajder, a Carolina Hurricanes fan and renowned zone entry tracker to ask him about Tlusty. According to Corey, Tlusty is a scorer who finds soft spots in the slot or around the net. He has played better on the right wing (his off-wing) than the left wing. Last January Tlusty started carrying the puck in more than previously and that improved his possession numbers. He is also good defensively, but has only recently started impacting the game with those skills.
Armed with this knowledge, we can suppose that Tlusty will fit in well in the Jets system that emphasizes carry-ins and defensive help. These are all areas that should help the Jets, but most of all Tlusty is not Thorburn so this trade is great already.
