Back in January, the Winnipeg Jets and Chicago Blackhawks completed an AHL trade sending Dmitry Kuzmin to the Rockford IceHogs in exchange for Isaak Phillips.
Today, the Winnipeg Jets announced that they’ve signed restricted free agent Isaak Phillips to a two-year, two-way contract carrying an average annual value of $812,500 in the NHL.
The 23-year-old defenseman played three games, scoring just one goal for the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2024-25 season. He posted 16 points (4G, 12A) and 74 PIMs in 67 AHL games, split between the Manitoba Moose and Rockford IceHogs.
The former fifth-round pick (141st overall) by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft has 56 games of NHL experience, all with the Blackhawks. Phillips has posted 12 points (2G, 10A) and 31 PIMs in that time. To date, he’s played 238 AHL games for the Moose and IceHogs, posting 87 points (26G, 61A) and 234 PIMs.
The Barrie, Ontario-born defender provided veteran leadership to the Moose’s blueline and will build on that role in the 2025-26 season.
Phillips, a 6-foot-3 left-shot defender, played most of his time on the Moose’s bottom pairing. He most notably found himself paired with Tyrel Bauer, giving the Moose a highly physical defensive pairing.
Isaak Phillips is the first restricted free agent off the board for the Winnipeg Jets. Gabriel Vilardi, Morgan Barron, Dylan Samberg, Parker Ford, and Tyrel Bauer are the remaining restricted free agents without contracts.
Vilardi, Barron, and Samberg all filed for salary arbitration, but it is likely the Jets will reach an agreement with one or two of the players before they reach their arbitration dates, which have yet to be set.
ITR 47: Then There Was Nothing – Inside The Rink
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