Source: Jets, Perfetti avoid arbitration, agree to 5-year deal

The Winnipeg Jets and center Cole Perfetti have avoided salary arbitration with a new five-year, $30 million contract, an NHL source told ESPN.

Perfetti’s new deal will carry a $6 million salary cap hit. He will be eligible for unrestricted free agency when the deal expires in 2031. Perfetti, 24, was coming off a two-year bridge contract with an average annual value of $3.25 million. Perfetti had filed for salary arbitration, and his hearing was set for Monday, July 20.

Perfetti was drafted 10th overall in 2020 by the Jets, with whom he has played his entire five-year NHL career. The center had 12 goals and 20 assists (32 points) in 68 games last season, skating to a minus-9. For his career, Perfetti has 59 goals and 98 assists (157 points) in 290 games.

The Jets missed the playoffs last season for the first time since 2022. Their offseason has been overshadowed by trade rumors involving goalie Connor Hellebuyck, the three-time Vezina Trophy winner and U.S. Olympic hero.

The Buffalo Sabres are among the teams that have inquired about the 33-year-old netminder.