Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Sabres winger Jordan Greenway will get his first chance to play against the Minnesota Wild on Friday night since they traded him to Buffalo back on March 3.
Greenway was a second-round pick (50th overall) of the Wild in the 2015 NHL Draft, and played 317 games with them. This is the first time the winger has ever had to face an old team.
"It’ll be interesting," admitted Greenway following Thursday's practice. "There’ll probably be a few more laughs pregame, but once the puck drops, it’s back to playing hockey."
Greenway wasn’t always playing before he was traded, and he didn’t want to look at the trade as a negative or to be upset about it.
"There are a couple of different ways you can look at it," Greenway said. "You can look at it from a negative standpoint and be mad about it, or you can find a way to turn it into a positive. You’ve got a new beginning, a new look, and you can go in with a fresh slate. So from my perspective, I looked at it as a positive."
Greenway has been paired with Tage Thompson this season while on the penalty kill. With how big they are, they take a lot of time and space away from the opposing power play.
"Coming in, it was a big focus in camp, and they told me that they wanted me to be a big part of it," Greenway said. "I took some passion in that, and I’ve made it one of my priorities."
Greenway talked about how both he and Thompson are big and being "long guys" they can take passing and shooting lanes away.
Head coach Don Granato knew Greenway even before he became a member of the Sabres. He knew the winger would fit in well with the PK.
"Lots and lots of experience of games played, and to play the right way," said Granato following Thursday's practice. "He knows the good ice, the middle of the rink, and he doesn’t give it up.
"He forces players into bad situations, and he can do that with size and reach. He also has the willingness to block a shot."
Granato also brought up a play where Greenway lost his stick, but he kept moving it so it remained in the way of the opponent’s power play.
With Greenway as one of the main penalty killers, the Sabres are fifth in the NHL at an 88% kill rate.
Buffalo is getting goal scoring again where many of the top guns struggled to start the season. Granato says the difference is one that he can feel.
"The first thing is where we are now compared to where we were two weeks ago. I think we were a little bit worried and held a little bit of fear, and it held us back," Granato explained.
"When I’m on the bench with them, the barometer for you as a coach is the chatter. It’s the pitch and the tone, and they’re giving you feedback on if they’re confident or whether they’re worried. We were worried two weeks ago in situations that now we’re confident."
At Thursday's practice, Alex Tuch missed again and is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. The Sabres are hoping he can play on Friday.
Returning to practice were defenseman Mattias Samuelsson and goalie Eric Comrie. Comrie says he felt good out there, but would still be a few more practices before he could play.
Forwards:
Girgensons – Jost – Okposo
Skinner – Thompson – Savoie
Rousek – Krebs – Olofsson
Greenway – Mittelstadt – Peterka
Cozens
Defense:
Clifton – E. Johnson
Power – Jokiharju
Samuelsson – Bryson
Dahlin – R. Johnson
