Jets have explored a trade for 538-game Oilers forward, per Elliotte Friedman

Trade chatter around Andrew Mangiapane is heating up, and the Winnipeg Jets are emerging as a team to watch.

Elliotte Friedman mentioned the Jets again on Friday's 32 Thoughts podcast, noting that Thursday's loss to Edmonton has Winnipeg asking serious internal questions.

Mangiapane did not dress for the Oilers, while a struggling Jets team saw a 3-1 lead evaporate in a 4-3 loss that extended the team's losing streak to 11 games. Clearly, this team needs a spark.

Various reports claim that there are multiple teams considering a Mangiapane trade, with Winnipeg and San Jose being the busiest among the initial crop of suitors.

Others are in on the monitoring, but the Jets are clearly the most aggressive about making a trade and have kicked tires, according to Friedman.

However, the more important question isn't what might or might not go down in a trade, but rather how this might go down, with whom, and when? Whether it will be prior to the February 4th Olympic roster freeze or afterwards, remains to be seen.

Winnipeg's interest is also intriguing. Mangiapane might not change the course of the whole season on his own, but he could be quite valuable if the price is right. The Oilers seem to have no qualms about trading him to get more cap flexibility.

Currently, there isn't a set timeline for it. Still, with the growing level of interest, along with the unknown role for Mangiapane, it does seem to be picking up speed.

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