The Jets have dipped into the waiver pool again, this time taking James Wright off the hands of the Florida Panthers, according to reports this morning,
Connolly cleared Waivers.WPG claimed James Wright off Waivers from FLA; NYI claimed Brian Strait from PIT.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) January 18, 2013
This marks the second addition of the week to Winnipeg’s roster, with this one coming just one day before the start of the regular season. However, unlike Anthony Peluso, Wright seems to be more of a finesse player, despite also being 6’4″.
The deadline to trim rosters down to 23 is, from my understanding, 3 p.m. EST, the Jets currently have 16 forwards on the roster, 17 including Antti Miettinen, who will start the season on injured reserve. Combine that with the 8 defenders, 9 with Zach Bogosian, and 2 goalies in camp, and the Jets will be have to free up 3 spaces on the roster.
Hockey's Future seems to see some good in him, as made evident in their talent analysis of him:
Talent Analysis
Wright is a gritty, two-way player with the prototypical size to play that type of style. Wright has a nice blend of skills but has not yet scored on the consistent basis that his talent suggests. He is very well-schooled in defensive positioning and puck support and can be used in all situations. Wright was a power play threat at the junior level. He is still developing and will improve as he adds strength and improves his technical skills.
Future
Wright has been dealt to the Florida Panthers by the Lightning. In the long-term, Wright projects as a solid two-way forward, either on the second or third line, who is also capable of supplying some offense.
Our own garret9 provided some insight into the fact that, while Wright is not going to light up the lamp, he is as good if not better defensively than most of the players vying for a spot in the bottom 6. If that means he supplants Chris Thorburn, I’m all for it.
I expect the likes of Maxime Macenauer, Spencer Machacek, Mark Scheifele, and the new acquisitions to be anxiously staring at their phones as the cutdown deadline approaches.
