Heinola earns another chance to stick in lineup

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This article was published 30/03/2022 (1302 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

NOT very long ago it looked as though defenceman Ville Heinola wouldn’t be part of the Winnipeg Jets push for a playoff spot.

The young defenceman had been re-assigned to the Manitoba Moose on Feb. 20, just as the rest of the team set off on an important four-game road trip, marking the fifth time Heinola had been demoted to the American Hockey League this season. He had played in just eight NHL games, logging mostly third-pairing minutes, and had just two assists.

Fast-forward to Sunday’s 2-1 overtime win against the Arizona Coyotes and afterwards the 21-year-old was being celebrated in the dressing room by his Jets teammates after being awarded the pilot’s helmet — given to the team’s in-house MVP — by winger Nikolaj Ehlers. Heinola contributed an assist on the game’s opening goal, and earlier in the match his skate had blocked what was a sure goal by the Coyotes.

“It was nice,” Heinola said after Tuesday’s practice of being presented the pilot’s helmet. “Obviously, it was nice to play. It was quite a break for me from the games, so definitely nice to get back in games. When you not play for a while, it’s just you’re waiting. It’s not fun.”

Prior to suiting up against Arizona, Heinola hadn’t played an NHL game since Feb. 14, finishing the night with an assist and was a minus-1 in a 3-1 defeat to the Chicago Blackhawks. He was on the ice for Chicago’s first two goals, and then in the press box for the final three games of Winnipeg’s four-game homestand, only to be sent down again to the Moose.

His performance on Sunday has earned Heinola another shot to stay in the lineup. He was working again with Nate Schmidt during Tuesday’s workout and will dress tonight when the Jets head into Buffalo to take on the Sabres.

What happens from there will likely be determined on how well he can perform against Buffalo, with Heinola hoping to build off his strong performance versus the Coyotes.

“I feel like, for me, when I get my chance I have to be good and play my game so I think then I can stay in the lineup,” Heinola said. “Always, as a player, you want to play in the NHL, and that’s your goal. But it’s hard for me to say anything about it. I feel like just have to find the right way to do that and I feel like, for me, I have played a couple of games with the Moose. It’s been nice for me. I play a lot there. Obviously, it raised my confidence there. Then I now have chance to play here.”

Interim head coach Dave Lowry has talked openly about Heinola’s play since taking over for Paul Maurice in mid-December. He’s been impressed by his skillset but has been equally troubled at times by his decision-making.

Heinola pinched late in a Feb. 1 game against the Philadelphia Flyers, a decision that led to the game-winning goal against. He was sent to the Moose the next day, only to be called up before the next game. When he was re-assigned to the Moose weeks later, Lowry talked about Heinola needing more ice time and opportunity, while adding that young players often want their NHL careers to take off before they’re ready for everyday work.

“A lot has to go with the player trusting the coach as well. Trust is a two-way street, and we have certain expectations that we expect out of the player,” Lowry said. “Rewind the tape and go back to the Philly game, we were in a position where we gambled, and we ended up walking away not getting a point and the player still got to play (the next game). I want our young guys to know that they are going to make mistakes and they are going to get opportunities, but if they continue to make the same mistake, then it falls back on us, and we have to make decisions. When Ville has played, he’s played extremely well.”

Trying to carve out a role early into an NHL career is something Schmidt knows well. Unlike Heinola, who was plucked in the first round, 20th overall, in the 2019 NHL Draft, Schmidt went undrafted. He eventually found his way to professional hockey after a three-year run with the University of Minnesota, as well as a few seasons with the AHL’s Hershey Bears.

He’d finally get his NHL break with the Washington Capitals, only to watch the team acquire defencemen at the trade deadline, resulting in him being pushed out of the lineup. It wasn’t until his third season in Washington that he managed to find full-time work in the NHL, a career that now spans 516 regular-season games.

“I had been in and out so many times, and you’re just like, ‘Well, I got to find a way to get back and how do I put this all together?’” Schmidt recalled. “You want to play your style and when you’re comfortable in this league with that style and knowing how you can play, that’s when things really start to snowball. I think that’s what’s gonna happen with Ville, the more he gets that.”

He added: “For Ville, the more games, just the confidence of playing more each and every day, gives you a little extra piece of that puzzle.”

Nothing is promised in professional sports and it’s unclear just how long Heinola will remain in the lineup. The Jets have back-to-back road games, with the Toronto Maple Leafs up right after the Sabres.

Lowry might return to Logan Stanley, or continue to ride Heinola, assuming all goes well in Buffalo. After all, it was his steady play against the Coyotes that gave his coach no reason to change things up.

“It’s based on the individual and it’s based on their skill set,” Lowry said. “What we want to do is make sure they excel at their skill set.”

jeff.hamilton@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @jeffkhamilton