Winnipeg Jets’ Top Prospects Brayden Yager & Colby Barlow Head to Separate Skiing With Manitoba Moose – Hockey Writers – Winnipeg Jets
These two first-rounders for the Manitoba Moose have had very different strides in their American Hockey League (AHL) seasons.
Yager looks relaxed and confident with the moose
On the plus side, Brayden Yager had 15 good games and looked comfortable and confident in his first professional hockey performance.
The 20-year-old 20-year-old and 2023 Pick (Pittsburgh penguins) quickly took a prominent place on the line, playing in the top center between AHL Veterans Phil di Ghiuseppe and Samuel Fagemo and they also created time in the power play.
So far, the Moose Jaw warrior and saskatoon blade have taken two goals and six assists for eight points to sit third in the third group. Those numbers don’t jump off the page — the Moose have been the team’s lowest-scoring team so far with 35 goals for a 2.33 goals-against average — but his playmaking skills are also shown regularly with strength and man advantage. He scored his first professional goal in his first game against laval rocket on Oct 10.
Yager is used to being an increasing producer, as he has put up 129 goals and 332 points in six campaigns of the Western Hockey League (whl), so it is safe to say that his presence will be important in the exit of the attack of the moose. Last season, he recorded 82 points in just 54 games between the Warriors and Hurricanes and put up 95 in 2023-24, when the Warriors won the WHL championship. He also captained Canada’s team to the 2025 world junior championships and recorded three assists in five games.
Barlow Aff to Start Start for second straight season
On the flip side, Barlow has gotten into the first 15 games of his first campaign. The 20-year-old has one goal and one assist, despite drawing second minutes on the left wing with Danny Zhilkin and Jaret Anderson Dolan. His lone goal, the game-winning third against the Texas Stars on Nov. 8, came during a verbal snap.
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Barlow began to start like last season in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) after being traded to the Oshawa generals in the attack of Owen Convelbuster, and was left out of Canada’s 2025 World Junior Champion Change because of his disappointing play.
However, the now 20-year-old really took it when the calendar turned to 2025 and ended the season with 32 goals and 29 assists for 61 points in 62 games to finish the team’s goals. He also shined in the postseason and played a key role in the OHL championship with 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points in 21 games.
MOOSE will hope that he can get the same heat as the season goes on, because he has really shot goaltenders that are difficult to handle. Barlow is well known for his maturity and good work ethic, so it is possible that the organization will not break even with a sample size of 15 games. However, with some combination of AHL Veteran Foress Nikita Chibrikov, Parker Ford, and Brad Lambert set to return to the Jets as the parent club gets healthy, Barlow could find himself the victim of a numbers game.
The Moose, riding a four-game winning streak, are currently 7-6-2-0 and the third in the middle division. They are back in action on Thursday, November 20 when they host the Chicago Wolves at the Canada Life Center in the first game of a sixth-game Homestand and their fifth game in Winnipeg this season.
