The whole thing is weird.
Look, I get Winnipeg isn't where he wanted to get drafted. That's ok. But part of life growing up is paying your dues. There are much, much worse fates than being tied to Winnipeg for 7-9 years and pocketing roughly 25 million or more dollars. You do well, you'll get your payday coming out of your ELC because that's how it rolls now and you set yourself up for UFA for another big payday. You retire at 35 or so with a legacy and $50-100 million dollars in career earnings if you're as good as you think.
Instead he's throwing shade at a team in the league that employs 25 other guys and is known to be a pretty caring organization because he saw his buddies get to play right away. Except his buddies went to crap teams and it seems somewhat likely one or more of them may get tired of losing faster than they think and all that losing may actually hamper their development. Certainly the Jets stunk out the playoffs but they were a fourth overall team in the league. So to expect to step into a starting lineup, likely desired to be top six, at that age, requires considerable, um, testicular fortitude and belief in yourself (likely unwarranted as yet). Ego is fine. Unchecked ego is less so.
Instead, you decide to play hardball, either on your own decision or on the advice of your circle because you think you're better than Winnipeg. Well good for you son. The problem being you did a couple of things that likely weren't considered:
1. your reputation as a team guy went downhill considerably. This is classic "I'm more important than the team". Now, if you're really THAT good, that will be forgotten promptly in your new market. But as it stands now you went from saying all the right things, performing super well at world juniors and being viewed as a future captain to being viewed, rightly or wrongly, as a toxic personality that presents a high risk. The mercenary types won't care, they never have. Others will.
2. For the reasons in point 1 you sullied your own value on the trade market. That's never smart. True, the Jets/Chevy hang onto people much longer than those people want to be hung on to, but jeez, don't those millions buy a little patience from you too? Roll in, sit down with Chevy, say I've changed my mind and I'm never going to sign any UFA years here ever so at the earliest opportunity trade me. Yes, Chevy will consume your early value and you'll be stuck in Winnipeg but you'll probably survive, may even thrive or *gasp* find out it isn't actually hell on earth.
3. For the reasons in point 2, you tangled with the wrong GM most likely. Love or hate Chevy one thing he seems to do exceedingly well is wait. Too well in some instances, but those other instances don't concern you. He also seems to win when his back is pressed against the wall. Weird, but it seems that way. So yeah, you've got two years to wait it out but you're losing money that whole time. And while you're doing that you're at risk of a catastrophic injury. I expect your agent and your family likely have insurance against that, but it will never pay what a full NHL career would have.
Really is a baffling situation. Would love to have had the kid here for his career and the fans would have loved him back. Said all the right things, showed all the right character. Boom, changes.
Yes.
