Winnipeg Jets Lose Forward to Division Rival in Free Agency

The Utah Mammoth have signed unrestricted free agent forward and former Winnipeg Jet, Brandon Tanev, to a three-year contract with an AAV of $2.5 million, according to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun.

Tanev, age 33, finished the season with the Winnipeg Jets after he was acquired from the Seattle Kraken for a draft pick just prior to the trade deadline.

Tanev had 10 goals and 22 points in 70 games split between the Kraken and Jets last season. He appeared in 13 playoff games before his team was eliminated by the Dallas Stars in the second round of the postseason.

The 6-foot winger Tanev just finished a six-year, $21 million contract with an annual cap hit of $3.5 million.

Originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Jets way back in 2016, Tanev has scored a total of 84 goals and accumulated 180 points in 552 career games split between the Jets, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Kraken.

He is a Toronto native and represented Canada at the 2024 World Championship in Czechia, where he recorded four goals and five points in a fourth-place finish.

The Mammoth have a ton of skill in the top six, so it's not surprising they wanted to add more grit to the bottom half of the lineup in the form of Tanev, and they have been very aggressive shaking up their roster as of late.