Jets All Out Top 25: #12 Johnny Oduya & #11 Chris Mason

Johnny Oduya, 29, Defense, 6'0, 200 lbs
Last Year's Rating: N/A This Year's Rating: #12 Difference: N/A

Chris Mason, 35, Goalie, 6'0, 200 lbs
Last Year's Rating: N/A This Year's Rating: #11 Difference: N/A

After a successful junior career in the QMJHL with both the Victoriaville Tigres and Moncton Wildcats in 2000-01, defenseman Johnny Oduya decided to spend more time back in his native Sweden, playing in the Swedish Elite League from 2003-04 until the 2005-06 season.

Despite being drafted 221st overall in the 2001 NHL Entry Draft, Oduya did not debut in the NHL until the 2006-07 season with the New Jersey Devils - the team who selected him in the seventh round.

Oduya made an immediate impact, playing 76 games in his rookie season collecting 11 points (two goals, nine assists).

He would spend three full seasons in New Jersey, playing in all 82 games in 2008-09, scoring a career high 29 points (seven goals, 22 assists).

Known as a two-way defenseman, Oduya can chip in with five-ten goals per season, around 25 points and bring a solid defensive game to the ice. His leadership has shown through in his career. Though only in the league for five seasons, Oduya has become a leader on the Jets blueline while in Atlanta along with veteran Ron Hainsey.

Look for Oduya to help in aiding the development of young defenders such as Zach Bogosian, Paul Postma, Andrey Zubarev, Zach Redmond, and Cody Sol in the future.

Behind Oduya and the defense is veteran backup goalie Chris Mason.

Though situated as the Jets backup since his time in Atlanta, Mason did end up starting 33 games last season, taking over main duties early in the season with starter Ondrej Pavelec was out with injury issues.

Though he had a mediocre 13-13-3 record and subpar numbers: 3.39 goals against average and a .892 save percentage, his leadership and experience is what is keeping him in a Jets uniform as a mentor for the young Pavelec.

Mason has seen many different cities and been the starter for other clubs, including St. Louis, where he won a career high 30 games in 2009-10. He has also won 20 games during two other seasons, with the Blues and Nashville Predators.

For Mason, his main duty is the supportive, mentor-like backup goalie. But his enthusiasm and his knack for having one of the sharpest masks in the NHL will help a young Jets team be even more exuberant about coming to a hockey mad city in Winnipeg.

Jets All Out Top 25: Honourable Mentions

As the first edition of the Jets All Out Top 25 starts tomorrow, we have decided to show the next of the best. That is (if that made any sense), the players who almost made the cut and we could potentially see cracking the Top 25 next season.

Tomorrow, we will start at the 25th best Jet in the lineup, but here are out Honourable Mentions:

Derek Meech, 27, D, 5’11, 200 lbs
As a native Winnipegger, Derek Meech’s search to make an NHL club full time is beginning anew in Winnipeg after he was not able to crack the Detroit Red Wings lineup full time, playing in a career high 49 games before the Wings let him go. Known more as a two-way defenseman, Meech bows just under the Top 25 Jets because he has not yet found a full-time job in the NHL despite his tenure with the Wings. Though, he could become a sixth or seventh defenseman on a very deep Jets depth chart.

Mark Flood, 26, D, 6’1, 190 lbs
Former Moose defenseman and New York Islanders defenseman as well, Mark Flood has six NHL games under his belt, which he played during the 2009-10 season, collecting an assist and a minus four rating. Flood has tremendous potential as a two-way defenseman who can quarterback a secondary power play unit. He showed that with both the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers and more recently with the Moose, with 40 points in 63 games in 2010-11.

Jason Gregoire, 22, LW, 6’1, 196 lbs
Newly signed and Manitoba native Jason Gregoire is looking to cement himself as an NHL player. A former New York Islander pick (3rd round, 76th overall in 2007), Gregoire was one of the best players for the last three seasons with the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux. His point totals increased ever season with UND, as he finished third in Sioux scoring in 2010-11 with 43 points and second in goals with 25. Gregoire makes the honourable mentions because of his potential and he may drop out of it next year if he does not live up to expectations in his development in the AHL, where will probably start the 2011-12 season.

Kenndal McArdle, 24, LW, 5’11, 190 lbs
McArdle almost doesn’t make the honourable mentions because of his lack of coming to his potential as a former first round pick. McArdle has only 33 games under his belt, which is very low for a former 20th overall pick by the Florida Panthers in 2005. McArdle has also seen limited success in the AHL and still is trying to find his way back to possibly changing his game to become a grinder at the NHL level.

Andrey Zubarev, 24, D, 6’1, 210 lbs
At 6’1, 210 pounds, Andrey Zubarev made his North American debut last season with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL and showed his defensive style, collecting 13 points in 51 games with the Wolves. He was called up at the end of the season and played in four games for Atlanta, registering one assist and four penalty minutes along with a minus four rating. Zubarev is a long shot to make the Jets defense this season, but his continued development in the AHL will help his defensive abilities on both sides of the puck.

2011-12 Predictions: Jets Defense

With Zach Bogosian on the way to being signed as an RFA, the Winnipeg Jets defense could be touted as one of the best young core with a hint of veteran presence in the NHL.

First Pairing: Dustin Byfuglien - Tobias Enstrom
Out of the top three scorers on team, Dustin Byfuglien and Tobias Enstrom finished one-two in scoring last season. Byfuglien led all defensemen with 20 goals and finished with 33 assists for 53 points in 81 games. Byfuglien's experience with being a contributing factor to the Chicago Blackhawks 2010 Stanley Cup championship is a big boost for the Jets in both the experience and the versatility department as Byfuglien can play both forward and defense. But don't expect the 2011 NHL All-Star to be jumping up to forward anytime soon.

Enstrom continues his strong play as a young player at 26. Entrom was to go to the 2011 NHL All-Star Game along with Byfuglien last season until an injury forced him to miss the game. His 51 points from the blueline can be promising as the Jets have weapons from the back end to help with their forwards up front. His 41 assists were the best on the team last season.

Second Pairing: Ron Hainsey - Zach Bogosian
Ron Hainsey is a seasoned veteran at only 30 years of age. His +3 rating on the team last year proves how much of a stalwart, stay at home defenseman he is. With only 19 points in all 82 games last year, Hainsey shows true grit and a tendency to not be injured as he has only missed nine games in his past five seasons with the Thrashers and Columbus Blue Jackets. He would be a great mentor for a young Zach Bogosian.

Bogosian, though unsigned, provides great upside at 21 years of age. With 17 points in 71 games last season, he goes into his fourth NHL season with a new city, new coach, and a new start. Jets brass are hoping the former third overall pick finally begins to show the potential that he was drafted for.


Third Pairing: Johnny Oduya - Mark Stuart
The third pairing includes two journeymen defensemen who are solid defensively and offensively. Johnny Oduya, 29, can provide a small bit of offensive output with 17 points in 82 games last season. The Swedish defenseman has 96 points in 382 career games.

Mark Stuart is a prototypical stay-at-home defenseman having more blocked shots than attempted shot on goal. Stuart, 27, only has 41 points in 306 career games with the Boston Bruins and Thrashers but did have a career year in 2008-09, scoring 17 points, including five goals with the Bruins. The former 21st overall pick in 2003 will be relied on to be a shutdown defenseman with his size at 6'2", 213 pounds.


Next In Line
Andrey Zubarev, 24, shows promise for a young defenseman when he played four games last season for the Thrashers in the late season. He collected 13 points (three goals, ten assists) in 51 games with the AHL's Chicago Wolves last season after playing five seasons in the KHL.

Randy Jones, 30, has 326 games of NHL experience that could make him the seventh defenseman on the team. His training camp this September could tell the story of where he fits into the Jets scheme.

Derek Meech, 27, is a native of Winnipeg and has 126 games of NHL experience over parts of four seasons with the Detroit Red Wings. Known for a great offensive upside in the AHL, Meech hopes to show that in his hometown. He also has a Stanley Cup championship to his credit too.

Mark Flood, 26, was a Manitoba Moose last year and was one of the players the Jets brought over to add to their depth. Flood has only six games of NHL experience with the NY Islanders in 2008-09 but looks to be more than just a top AHL defenseman

Paul Postma, 22, adds just another great young defenseman to the depth of the Jets defense. He played one game last season for the Thrashers and has collected 74 points (27 goals, 47 assists) in 132 games with the Chicago Wolves the last two seasons. He may be able to crack the roster in the next two years.