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In a perfect world, perhaps the Jets wouldn’t need him right now.

In a perfect world, they’d be able to send him down to the Manitoba Moose or even back to Liiga in Finland for another year and let that ELC slide to the 2020-21 season.

The problem is, Heinola has taken hold of a spot on the roster, both by merit, and by opportunity. The Jets bled so much on defence over the summer that circumstances presented themselves to all comers on the blue line during training camp.

That included a wide-eyed Heinola, who walked off the stage at the NHL Draft in June and took training camp by storm in September, forcing himself into the opening-night lineup.

The decision to keep him past training camp was relatively easy.

The much harder one now rests in the hands of general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and head coach Paul Maurice.

“It’s the nice part of not being in management,” Maurice said.

Sure, but you have some input, right?

“I do. And it’s not an easy answer,” Maurice said.

It certainly isn’t.

Heinola played the first five games for the Jets and then sat the next three, something Maurice said wasn’t personal, but rather a decision the coaching staff walked him through.

“Some of it was preservation,” Maurice said last week, noting a tough-as-nails training camp the Finn endured.

Heinola said Monday that it was difficult to come out of the lineup. All he could do was try to stay ready for when his number was called.

“It’s always hard to watch the game in the press box, but you can’t do nothing,” Heinola said. “That’s what it is.”