Samberg pays it forward to Salomonsson

TAMPA, Fla. — It wasn’t all that long ago when the proverbial skate was on the other foot for Dylan Samberg.

The Winnipeg Jets defenceman could only smile and chuckle when asked about the idea of serving as a mentor for top prospect Elias Salomonsson after the morning skate and prior to taking on the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday night.

“It’s weird. I was in his shoes a few years ago,” said Samberg, who turned 27 last week. “Now to be called a mentor is a little bit different. It makes me feel old. It’s good. I’m just trying to help him as much as possible and trying to make sure he has fun while he’s doing it.”

The fun factor has been apparent for both Samberg and Salomonsson of late, as the duo has been seeing plenty of high-leverage minutes against the most skilled forwards of the opponents in recent games.

Samberg benefitted from playing alongside the affable Nate Schmidt during his first few seasons of regular NHL duty and he’s been more than happy to pay it forward to Salomonsson.

“He’s definitely building his confidence,” said Samberg, who is into his fourth full season as a regular and, after tonight, will be up to 253 NHL games. “You can see it game to game, and I think he feels a bit more established and more comfortable which is awesome to see. He’s starting to get up in the rush and everything. He’s turning into an everyday NHL defenceman, which is nice to see.”

Seeing substantial growth in a short period of time is something Samberg is familiar with, given how he was able to excel in second-pairing minutes last season.

That promotion was warranted, but how he handled the additional responsibility served notice that he was ready to take the next step in his personal development.

“I didn’t know anything about Sammy last year, to be honest with you,” said Jets defenceman Luke Schenn, who was acquired prior to the NHL trade deadline last March and quickly found himself paired with Samberg after an injury to Neal Pionk. “I was so impressed with the way he carried himself and handled himself. He’s always calm and steady and can play those big, heavy matchups each and every night.

“That’s when I learned a lot about him and his calm demeanour. He’s doing a great job playing with (Salomonsson). They’ve been rock solid for us.”

Salomonsson got his first taste of NHL action in late November, suiting up in four games before he was returned to the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League for some additional seasoning.

That stint gave Salomonsson an idea of what it was like to make the jump, it also allowed him to feel an additional layer of comfort when he returned to the NHL earlier this month.

Given how steady he’s been playing, it’s easy to forget that Thursday was just his 10th game in the NHL.

“There were a lot of firsts for him when he came up the first time. We were in some tough buildings on the road,” said Jets head coach Scott Arniel.

“Now, he’s a little more settled. He recognizes that when he uses his skill set that he can be a really good defender. I like the way he jumps up (in the rush). He’s got some really good vision with the puck. And it’s great to see that a guy gets an opportunity early in the year, he went back down (to the AHL) and came back up and took advantage of that ice time that was put in front of him.”

The comparisons between Salomonsson and Samberg are fitting as both players have a high level of hockey intelligence to go with strong mobility and willingness to defend first, coupled with the ability to make efficient zone exits with a crisp first pass.

“You know what, those two have been really good,” said Arniel. “Sal’s feet and Sammy’s feet are the two things that jump out at me the most. They both have great ability to work laterally and work back for pucks quickly. You see a lot of that, where they’re back and beating the opposition’s forecheck. Sammy has helped Sal and Sal has been really good with Sammy as well.”

That’s the thing about this budding defensive partnership: it’s been mutually beneficial.

Although it’s clear that Samberg has elevated his game of late — as he’s been leaned on more heavily with the absence Pionk (lower body injury, out since Jan. 15) — Salomonsson’s ability to have the game slow down, at least in terms of his ability to process information quickly, has allowed both players to flourish.

It will be interesting to see how the pairings shake down once Pionk returns to action after the Olympic break, but one thing is certain: Salmonsson looks like someone that warrants a longer look during the stretch run and he’s looking more and more like a full-time NHLer.

“One thing that stands out is his skating ability and when you have that skating ability, you’re able to get up in the play and you’re able to get back,” said Schenn. “He has good gaps and he can close out plays off the rush and he’s moving the puck really well. He’s got some poise out there and he’s going to be a great defenceman for this organization for a long time.”

Salomonsson is someone that should bring some extra edge to the defence corps once he gets even more settled into life in the big leagues.

“He’s got really good positioning,” said Schenn. “There are different ways to play with an edge, whether that’s getting in guys’ faces or being physical. He’s only going to grow as a player.”

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