Samberg’s return seamless D-man’s hockey smarts a welcome addition to Jets blue line By: Ken Wiebe Posted: 5:54 PM CST Monday, Nov. 17, 2025

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This article was published 17/11/2025 (322 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As awkward as it felt at the time, Dylan Samberg was quick to admit that getting on the ice without being able to touch the puck was a critical element to speeding up his recovery.

“It obviously stunk that I wasn’t able to stick handle or shoot or anything like that,” said Samberg, the Winnipeg Jets defenceman who returned to the lineup during the past two games after his broken wrist finally healed. “But, those things come back pretty quickly at least. But whereas conditioning is kind of the harder one to get into.”

The rust was minimal for Samberg in games against the Calgary Flames and Seattle Kraken and conditioning certainly wasn’t an issue as he was just north of 23 minutes in his season debut and then just above 24 minutes of ice time in Saturday’s tilt that required a shootout for the Jets to win.

You can expect Samberg to remain in that range as the Jets open a three-game homestand against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday.

Being without Samberg on the back end for the first 16 games of the season was a significant blow for the Jets, who have endured some unexpected defensive issues during the first quarter of the campaign.

Now that he’s reunited with Neal Pionk on the second pairing, the expectation is the zone exits should be a little cleaner and the Jets should end up spending a bit less time in the defensive zone.

“He’s got good mobility and he gets back quick,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “His retrievals are good, his first pass is good. He closes, he ends plays fast because of his feet. He’s got some size, physicality, he can go through bodies. It kind of starts there.”

Samberg’s return should also help lighten the load, even if slightly, on Jets the top pairing of Dylan DeMelo and Josh Morrissey. Morrissey is riding a five-game point streak that has him up to 19 points, which had him second in the NHL among defencemen behind Cale Makar going into Monday’s action.

“It’s kind of crazy. I have all that padding, and it always seems to find that one little spot.”

Samberg had an early scare as he blocked a shot off his foot against the Kraken, but was fortunate to come away with minimal damage.

“I feel like it never hits a good spot. It never feels good,” said Samberg, who recorded five blocked shots and three hits in his first two games. “But, yeah, it’s, it’s kind of crazy. I have all that padding, and it always seems to find that one little spot. But, yeah, nothing serious, just a couple bumps and bruises.”

Samberg is no stranger to sacrificing his body and one of the career-high 91 shots he blocked last season — a one-timer from Steven Stamkos — left him sidelined for 21 games with a broken foot.

Another underrated element of Samberg’s game is his hockey sense, which is something he uses effectively to break up plays in the defensive zone.

Making those reads in real time isn’t easy, but Samberg quickly got himself up to speed on that front.

“Especially that first period, you’re just trying to get the timing back of things,” said Samberg. “Guys have had a month on you playing games. So, just trying to find the timing of things again. But then, everything else kind of falls back into place once you get that.”

Arniel saw plenty of positive signs from Samberg in his return to the lineup.

“When you’re playing in a top-four situation as a defenceman, that has to be part of your DNA, your hockey IQ,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel. “He’s got great feet and great mobility, but he’s also anticipating. He anticipates real well. That’s why I think he’s a good penalty killer.

“He seems to stay one step ahead of the next play and, if you look at guys in this league that are in that top four, that’s what they do well. It’s not just trying to get in foot races, it’s not just trying to be physical. It’s anticipating, both offensively and defensively. (Samberg) has really grown in that area the last couple of years.”

Samberg’s mobility is something that helps him in the defensive zone, but it’s also helped him offensively, as it allows him to join the rush and provide a second wave of the offensive attack.

By recording six goals and 20 points in 60 games last season, Samberg provided a glimpse of his offensive upside and the expectation is that those totals could climb.

On Monday afternoon, the Jets activated forwards Morgan Barron and Cole Koepke off injured reserve and assigned forwards Parker Ford, Brad Lambert and Nikita Chibrikov to the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League.

The roster moves leaves defenceman Haydn Fleury (concussion protocol) as the only injured player for the Jets at the time being.

All of Ford, Lambert and Chibrikov saw great benefits to being on the NHL roster for the bulk of the first quarter of the season, but Lambert (four games) and Chibrikov (eight games) have been used sparingly, so it’s important for them to get more ice time.

Ford, who had one assist in 11 games while recording 20 hits and 11 blocked shots while averaging just under 10 minutes of ice time per game, did the best job of adapting to the role he was asked to play as the Jets’ fourth-line centre. Expect each of those players to be solid recall options the next time a forward is needed.

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