Winnipeg Jets: Is Sami Niku the odd man out defensively?

With ten defensemen on the roster, the Winnipeg Jets have a number of decisions to make. Decisions that could see Sami Niku as the odd man out.

After re-signing Sami Niku, the Winnipeg Jets have an abundance of depth in defense, but the question is does that leave Niku as the odd one out?

The Jets have spent the offseason bolstering their defense group to retool a core that already featured Josh Morrissey and Neal Pionk.

Winnipeg re-signed Dylan DeMelo, who proved to be a strong fit alongside Morrissey, after arriving in February. While the Jets also signed Derek Forbort and re-signed Nathan Beaulieu, Luca Sbisa and Niku himself.

In addition, the Jets also have Ville Heinola and Dylan Samberg at their disposal. Heinola spent last season in the NHL, AHL and developing in Finland, while Samberg was playing at the college level. Both phenoms look set for bigger roles when the season starts.

That gives the Jets and Paul Maurice 10 defensemen to fill six slots. The biggest question is will Niku be left the odd man out?

Niku, who was a seventh round pick in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, has struggled to consistently to feature in the Jets defensive pairings. He only started in 17 games, despite the Jets third pairing being among the worst in the league.

Perhaps even more concerning is that Niku’s competition on Winnipeg’s bottom pairing consisted of Sbisa and Carl Dahlstrom and late-summer free-agent acquisition Anthony Bitetto, who has since departed.

The fact that Niku has only played 48 NHL games and incidentally the fact Maurice gave minutes to Bitetto, who had no future in Winnipeg makes the situation look far from promising for the 24-year-old.

However, what is particularly confusing is that everything about Niku’s current situation says that he’s an NHL player. Niku’s contract is a one-way deal, confirming that he will get paid in full regardless of whether he plays for Jets or for the Manitoba Moose.

Plus Niku is unlikely to get extended minutes on the Moose either, given he is no longer exempt from waivers. He’ll only play in the AHL if he passes through waivers this season.

Nevertheless, if Niku was unable to consistently stick around on the Jets third pair, it is hard to envision him leapfrogging Sbisa, Beaulieu, or Tucker Poolman to claim a starting role this season.

In addition, Samberg and Heinola are both projected to have a bigger impact and are both younger than the 24-year-old Niku. Unless there are training camp injuries, Niku looks likely to be buried at the bottom of the depth chart.

Winnipeg Jets Fans: Where do you think Sami Niku fits in the Jets lineup for the upcoming season? Leave your comments below!