Pionk ranks second on the Jets in blocked shots (30, behind Morrissey's 31) and is tied with Adam Lowry for third in hits (31). Also, Winnipeg has a 50.0 shot-attempts percentage at 5-on-5 and a 54.5 on-ice goals-for percentage at 5-on-5 when he's on the ice.
"There's always guys that you kind of look at and go, 'Man, how did he slip through the cracks (in the draft) or wasn't on the radar?' " said Winnipeg defenseman Josh Morrissey, chosen No. 13 in the 2013 NHL Draft. "Obviously, he's established himself and has had a great start to his career. He's just rolling along. I'm happy to sit beside him in the room and have him as a teammate."
Just nine of the 68 defensemen selected in the 2013 draft have played at least 450 NHL games, and only four of the 66 chosen in the 2014 NHL Draft have reached that many.
Pionk has 234 points (37 goals, 197 assists) and a plus-9 rating in 485 NHL games.
His best amateur hockey season was the one after he went undrafted a second straight year, with 48 points (seven goals, 41 assists) as captain of Sioux City of the United States Hockey League (2014-15) on the way to being named USHL defenseman of the year.
He was signed by the New York Rangers as a college free agent on May 1, 2017, after two seasons at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
"I didn't try to talk him out of it; opportunities like this have less to do with ability and more to do with maturity and Neal was a mature kid," Minnesota Duluth coach Scott Sandelin said. "It's not so much about the skill, because a lot of them can play at that level or the American Hockey League, but it's just the mental makeup.
"Neal played hard for me and always played with a little bit with an edge. He's got some good offensive skills, but is just so competitive, hard-nosed. I didn't really look at it like he was motivated because he didn't get drafted, but he played that way, and still does."
On June 17, 2019, Pionk was acquired by the Jets in a trade, along with a first-round pick in the 2019 NHL Draft (defenseman Ville Heinola), for current Rangers captain Jacob Trouba.
"The Rangers were one of the teams that believed in me from the beginning of the free agent process so I'm forever grateful," Pionk said. "I went to Hartford (of the American Hockey League), worked on my pro game and developed my skill, not only as a hockey player but in the NHL as a professional."
What's changed about his game since that first NHL season with the Rangers in 2017-18?
"I'm more well-rounded," he said. "I think every defenseman growing up my size (6-foot, 190 pounds), was offensive in high school and junior. You're running around playing forward, and then you get to college and pro, and it's a little different. You got to play both sides of the puck because, as it turns out, there's more skilled guys than you out there.
"Not only that, but managing it through 82 games is a big thing."
This season, Sandelin is coaching the last of the five Pionk brothers at Minnesota Duluth. Aaron (6-1, 175), a forward-turned-defenseman chosen by the Minnesota Wild in the fifth round (No. 149) of the 2023 NHL Draft, is bigger than Neal and plays a top-four role, but doesn't possess the 'nastiness' of his brother, according to Sandelin.
"When I watch [Neal Pionk] play," Sandelin said, "and in a league with the size, speed and strength of those guys, the one thing that's always been consistent with him, is that toughness to get the job done."
