Sami Niku

Sami Niku (born 10 October 1996) is a Finnish professional ice hockey defenceman currently playing with the Winnipeg Jets of the National Hockey League (NHL). Niku was selected by the Jets in the 7th round (198th overall) of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft.[1]

Sami Niku
Born (1996-10-10) 10 October 1996
Haapavesi, Finland
Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight 176 lb (80 kg; 12 st 8 lb)
Position Defence
Shoots Left
NHL team
Former teams		 Winnipeg Jets
JYP Jyväskylä
NHL Draft 198th overall, 2015
Winnipeg Jets
Playing career 2013–present

Playing career

Niku made his Liiga debut playing with JYP Jyväskylä during the 2014–15 Liiga season.[2]

Following the 2016–17 season with JYP, having played his first full season in the Liiga in posting 27 points in 59 games, Niku agreed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Winnipeg Jets on May 15, 2017.[3] He played most of the 2017–18 season with the Manitoba Moose, the Jets' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate. He was called up by the Jets on April 1, 2018, and scored his first goal in his NHL debut in a Jets' win over the Montreal Canadiens on April 3.[4] At conclusion of the 2017–18 regular season, Niku was voted as the AHL's top defenseman,[5] as well as earning AHL First All-Star team[6] and the AHL All-Rookie honours.[7]

International play
Medal record
Representing  Finland
Ice hockey
IIHF World U20 Championship
2016 Finland

Internationally, Niku played in the 2014 IIHF World U18 Championships, the 2015 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, and the 2016 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
2012–13 JYP Jyväskylä Jr. A 30 0 8 8 22 6 0 0 0 2
2013–14 JYP Jyväskylä Jr. A 20 4 10 14 20 — — — — —
2013–14 JYP-Akatemia Mestis 30 0 3 3 16 — — — — —
2014–15 JYP-Akatemia Mestis 39 3 22 25 24 6 0 5 5 4
2014–15 JYP Jyväskylä Liiga 12 0 1 1 6 — — — — —
2015–16 JYP Jyväskylä Liiga 38 4 7 11 2 — — — — —
2015–16 JYP-Akatemia Mestis 7 0 2 2 4 — — — — —
2016–17 JYP Jyväskylä Liiga 59 5 22 27 26 15 1 5 6 2
2017–18 Manitoba Moose AHL 76 16 38 54 30 9 1 2 3 2
2017–18 Winnipeg Jets NHL 1 1 0 1 0 — — — — —
2018–19 Manitoba Moose AHL 20 3 9 12 14 — — — — —
2018–19 Winnipeg Jets NHL 30 1 3 4 2 — — — — —
2019–20 Manitoba Moose AHL 18 3 11 14 12 — — — — —
2019–20 Winnipeg Jets NHL 17 0 5 5 12
Liiga totals 109 9 30 39 34 15 1 5 6 2
NHL totals 48 2 8 10 14 — — — — —

International
Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM
2013 Finland U17 7th 5 1 1 2 4
2013 Finland IH18 5th 4 1 1 2 4
2014 Finland WJC18 6th 5 1 0 1 0
2015 Finland WJC 7th 5 0 0 0 0
2016 Finland WJC 8 1 2 3 6
Junior totals 27 4 4 8 14

Awards and honors
Award Year
AHL
Eddie Shore Award for Top Defensemen 2018 [5]
First All-Star team 2018 [6]
All-Rookie Team 2018 [7]

References
  1. "The Winnipeg Jets draft Sami Niku and Matteo Gennaro in the seventh round". Arctic Ice Hockey. 27 June 2015.
  2. "Sami Niku player profile". jatkoaika.com (in Finnish). 3 April 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2015.
  3. "Jets sign Sami Niku to entry-level contract". Winnipeg Jets. 15 May 2017. Retrieved 15 May 2017.
  4. "Jets recall Sami Niku". NHL.com. 1 April 2018.
  5. "NIKU VOTED AHL'S TOP DEFENSEMAN FOR 2017-18". American Hockey League. 10 April 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
  6. "2017-18 AHL FIRST, SECOND ALL-STAR TEAMS UNVEILED". theahl.com. 5 April 2018. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  7. "2017-18 AHL ALL-ROOKIE TEAM NAMED". theahl.com. 4 April 2018. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.