campabee82 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 https://www.nhl.com/canadiens/news/one-year-contract-for-defenseman-sami-niku/c-326307878 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
campabee82 Posted September 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 1 year 2 way deal will see him make $750,000 in NHL and $425,000 in AHL. Great signing, now hopefully he takes a spot in the top 6 and shifts Chiarot back to the left side so we can line up. Edmundson-Petry Romanov-Savard Chiarot-Niku Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTed3 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 1 hour ago, campabee82 said: 1 year 2 way deal will see him make $750,000 in NHL and $425,000 in AHL. Great signing, now hopefully he takes a spot in the top 6 and shifts Chiarot back to the left side so we can line up. Edmundson-Petry Romanov-Savard Chiarot-Niku This is most likely now, although I wouldn't rule out Chiarot on the right and Kulak in over Niku. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
campabee82 Posted September 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 Just now, BigTed3 said: This is most likely now, although I wouldn't rule out Chiarot on the right and Kulak in over Niku. No I think Kulak has the inside track right now but Niku has the potential to steal a spot and is better than Wideman for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis22 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 Where is Otto Leskinen ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HabsAlways Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 9 minutes ago, Regis22 said: Where is Otto Leskinen ? We didn't resign him and he's in the KHL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electron58 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 50 minutes ago, Regis22 said: Where is Otto Leskinen ? 41 minutes ago, HabsAlways said: We didn't resign him and he's in the KHL We still hold his rights. He probably should have hung around. He'll be passed by for sure now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electron58 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 2 hours ago, campabee82 said: 1 year 2 way deal will see him make $750,000 in NHL and $425,000 in AHL. Great signing, now hopefully he takes a spot in the top 6 and shifts Chiarot back to the left side so we can line up. Edmundson-Petry Romanov-Savard Chiarot-Niku Spot on. Niku certainly has the potential. In 2018, Niku became the second rookie in AHL history to earn the Eddie Shore Award, presented to the League's best defenseman. Here's hoping that a change in scenery will do him/us wonders. And playing with Chiarot should boost his confidence. 3 very realistic pairings strategically positioned. GHG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
campabee82 Posted September 24, 2021 Author Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 4 minutes ago, electron58 said: Spot on. Niku certainly has the potential. In 2018, Niku became the second rookie in AHL history to earn the Eddie Shore Award, presented to the League's best defenseman. Here's hoping that a change in scenery will do him/us wonders. And playing with Chiarot should boost his confidence. 3 very realistic pairings strategically positioned. GHG Yes, he has the potential to be another Jeff Petry if he can round out his game and add some muscle. Really like the potential of this signing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramcharger440 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 Really happy with this signing! it could be a real winner for us! if not it costs us very very little to find out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AH64 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 very interesting signing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTed3 Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 Sami Niku has very bad numbers in the NHL, albeit in a limited number of games. He definitely has potential and I like that we went after a guy who can skate and move the puck rather than a pylon. But my expectations here are tempered. Some of the media have said that if the Habs didn't like Mete, they're going to have a hard time liking Niku. He plays the right side, but it's not clear he's an upgrade on the top 6 guys in camp already. I like the signing as a low-risk move but as with most of Bergevin's defence acquisitions, this doesn't move the needle much in terms of our top 4 and making us significantly better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maas_art Posted September 24, 2021 Report Share Posted September 24, 2021 25 minutes ago, BigTed3 said: Sami Niku has very bad numbers in the NHL, albeit in a limited number of games. He definitely has potential and I like that we went after a guy who can skate and move the puck rather than a pylon. But my expectations here are tempered. Some of the media have said that if the Habs didn't like Mete, they're going to have a hard time liking Niku. He plays the right side, but it's not clear he's an upgrade on the top 6 guys in camp already. I like the signing as a low-risk move but as with most of Bergevin's defence acquisitions, this doesn't move the needle much in terms of our top 4 and making us significantly better. My friends in Winnipeg tell me his numbers are worse when he plays RD. He's played both RD and LD but because of the predominance of LD in their system he's played his off-side more often. He's got good speed so i assume the idea is he can make up for mistakes but Id like to see what he can do on the left side first, although that still leaves us with a hole at RD. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electron58 Posted September 25, 2021 Report Share Posted September 25, 2021 16 hours ago, maas_art said: My friends in Winnipeg tell me his numbers are worse when he plays RD. He's played both RD and LD but because of the predominance of LD in their system he's played his off-side more often. He's got good speed so i assume the idea is he can make up for mistakes but Id like to see what he can do on the left side first, although that still leaves us with a hole at RD. Well that's disappointing news. On a more interesting note, in the 2018-2019 season Sami Niku & Ben Chiarot were teammates, with SN playing 30 games and Big Ben playing 78 games. Niku +/- = 0 Ben +/- = 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RCAF48 Posted September 25, 2021 Report Share Posted September 25, 2021 I think he was signed as a # 7-8 D with the contract structured to make him unattractive for another team to claim off waivers. An insurance move by MB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony5775 Posted September 26, 2021 Report Share Posted September 26, 2021 9 hours ago, RCAF48 said: I think he was signed as a # 7-8 D with the contract structured to make him unattractive for another team to claim off waivers. An insurance move by MB. Seen him play a couple of times. He reminds me of P.K. Once he matures a little he might be a regular top 4 guy. He has the skill, just takes a lot of chances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electron58 Posted September 26, 2021 Report Share Posted September 26, 2021 29 minutes ago, tony5775 said: Seen him play a couple of times. He reminds me of P.K. Once he matures a little he might be a regular top 4 guy. He has the skill, just takes a lot of chances. If we can harness that control, we may have something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony5775 Posted October 1, 2021 Report Share Posted October 1, 2021 Get to see this kid tonight, looking forward to see how he has progressed. Sounds like he really wants to make the team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maas_art Posted October 1, 2021 Report Share Posted October 1, 2021 7 minutes ago, tony5775 said: Get to see this kid tonight, looking forward to see how he has progressed. Sounds like he really wants to make the team. Agree. I like it when players "bet on themselves." He gave up a gurarnteed $700k+ to take a potential $475k if he cant stick with the big team. I know its only one year but he's still leaving a substantial amount of money on the table if he cant crack the lineup - he must believe he can. At one point he was a top prospect for the jets -with some winnipeg pundits saying he should be untouchable in deadline deals when his name surfaced in rumours. Obvioulsy players values go up and down (didnt MB once call Mete untouchable?) but Niku has a really intriguing skill set. It may or may not work out for us but im pretty interested to find out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electron58 Posted October 2, 2021 Report Share Posted October 2, 2021 18 hours ago, tony5775 said: Get to see this kid tonight, looking forward to see how he has progressed. Sounds like he really wants to make the team. Not a good first 5 minutes, and then out with an injury. Not much time to prove his worth, if he misses any kind of time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regis22 Posted October 2, 2021 Report Share Posted October 2, 2021 Habs D Niku out indefinitely with a concussion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramcharger440 Posted October 30, 2021 Report Share Posted October 30, 2021 So far I like what I am seeing, the first couple of games he seemed out of sync but as he has had more ice I think he may turn out pretty good. I kind of feel like he never got enough ice before to get into the groove. So far I like him much more than Wideman and he runs the PP better and seems to be getting even better at that as time goes on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
electron58 Posted October 30, 2021 Report Share Posted October 30, 2021 For sure. Once he gets more comfortable with the system, and gets his legs going, he could be a real asset. He, more than anybody, should be given a little leeway. Once he gets his confidence, he could be really good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramcharger440 Posted October 30, 2021 Report Share Posted October 30, 2021 2 hours ago, electron58 said: For sure. Once he gets more comfortable with the system, and gets his legs going, he could be a real asset. He, more than anybody, should be given a little leeway. Once he gets his confidence, he could be really good. I agree he is the type of D man we are missing and once Eddy comes back we should be able to shuffle some guys around to let him get up to speed he really is starting to make an impression on the PP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maas_art Posted October 30, 2021 Report Share Posted October 30, 2021 3 hours ago, ramcharger440 said: So far I like what I am seeing, the first couple of games he seemed out of sync but as he has had more ice I think he may turn out pretty good. I kind of feel like he never got enough ice before to get into the groove. So far I like him much more than Wideman and he runs the PP better and seems to be getting even better at that as time goes on. I said when we acquired him: he's an NHL defensman. That im sure of. But then, so are all of our guys. The problem is that aside from Petry and maybe Edmundson, none are locks as top 3. Guys like Chairot or Savard are fine as #4s with a strong partner but while we have 7 NHL-caliber Dmen we need someone to step up beyond that #4-6 position. Im not sure Niku can be that guy but imho only he and Romanov have a chance of still developing. No one else on our current roster is going to suddenly make the jump to a quality top 3 guy - you know what you've got with those other guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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