Ridly Greig Brings Throwback Hockey Back to the Senators

Ridly Greig may have a retro style of play, but his effectiveness is far from outdated. The future Ottawa Senators fan favorite has upside at both ends of the ice and tons of grit.

Ridly Greig knew from a young age that he couldn’t rely solely on his raw talent to be an impactful player.

“My dad always said, ‘If you’re not going to get the puck, try to make a difference in the game, whatever way you can,’ ” Greig said.

That sentiment from his father Mark Greig, a former NHLer and a scout for the Philadelphia Flyers, laid the foundation for the Ottawa Senators’ 2020 first-round pick evolving into what many deem as a ‘heart and soul’ type of player. 

Greig — listed at six-foot and 183 pounds — took pride in winning puck battles and delivering body checks to players much bigger than him. He was never wary of blocking shots, even as a top player at the amateur level. 

That shouldn’t surprise those who saw Greig in NHL action this season. His fearlessness is palpable. Whether it was the three painfully looking blocks he made in a pre-season game against the Montreal Canadiens or when he laid out Calgary Flames defenseman Chris Tanev during a regular-season game on Feb. 13, Greig's compete level often takes center stage. 

But make no mistake, Greig isn’t a highly regarded prospect just because of his grit. He’s got a great deal of offensive upside to go along with it, too. He has a goal-scorer’s touch, highlighted by his effective wrist shot. He also does a lot of the heavy lifting on the forecheck – where his tenacity and refined stickwork help him win 1-on-1 battles.

“There aren’t many players like him anymore in 2023,” said Senators assistant GM Ryan Bowness. “The game has changed. The way he likes to play, stylistically – he’s a throwback.”

Greig has heard that for years now.

“I have some skill, and then the way I compete — it’s that kind of not giving a s--- mentality,” Greig explained. “I’ve never really been scared of a guy.”

Greig’s game transitioned seamlessly to the NHL and AHL this past season, which was his first full year as a pro. In fact, Senators GM Pierre Dorion deemed Greig an 'untouchable' when speaking to reporters ahead of the trade deadline. That’s because of all the young and exciting pieces Ottawa has, none possess what Greig has. And if things pan out the way they look destined to, Greig could become a key ingredient to a Senators team that looks poised to make several playoff runs.

“Any big game we’ve had, he’s stepped up,” said Belleville Senators coach David Bell. “Whether it’s on the penalty kill with a shorthanded goal, a power-play goal, a big (faceoff) — the bigger the moment, the better he plays.”

In 39 AHL outings this season, Greig recorded 15 goals and 29 points — finishing eighth in points per game (0.74) among U-21 AHL skaters who played a minimum of 20 games. 

And while Belleville was near the bottom of the AHL standings, the B-Sens were a much different team when Greig was in the lineup (18-6-4-1 record, .525 win percentage) than they were without him (13-15-2-3, .469 percentage). 

“He will agitate the other team. He’ll piss them off, but he’ll back it up, too and go score a goal.” - David Bell on Ridly Greig

Although it was a smaller sample size, Greig was also quite effective through 20 NHL games. While spending most of his time on a line with Claude Giroux and Alex DeBrincat, Greig tallied two goals and nine points. Six of those were scored at 5-on-5, where he recorded the second-most scoring chances (9.93) and takeaways (2.15) per 60 minutes of any Ottawa skater that played at least 200 minutes.

He also posted a 59-percent expected goals-for at 5-on-5, a testament to his two-way play-driving – which is a big part of why scouts are so enamored with his upside.

And while conventional wisdom would suggest that number is solely a byproduct of him playing with DeBrincat and Giroux, the three posted a 61-percent expected goals-for percentage at 5-on-5 — but in their ice time separate from Greig, Giroux posted a 49-percent xGF, and DeBrincat had a 55-percent xGF, according to moneypuck.com.

His relentlessness is evident on the defensive side of things, where his determination and high hockey IQ work cohesively and allow him to nullify passing and shooting lanes at top speed.

One NHL scout told The Hockey News Greig has all the attributes to be a player like Phillip Danault.

“When you look at him, stylistically, you’d probably say, ‘Oh, he’s a third-line center.’ But people did that with Phil Danault, too,” the scout explained. “Everyone talked about Danault as this great third-line center. When he was a first-line center in Montreal, everyone was like, ‘Yeah, but he’s really a third-line center.’ Now he’s in LA, playing second-line minutes, and still getting 50-plus points. You can’t say he’s a third-line center anymore, can you?”

“I have some skill, and then the way I compete — it’s that kind of not giving a s--- mentality.” - Ridly Greig

With the ability to make an impact at both ends of the ice, Greig has the potential to pose as a matchup nightmare for opponents. 

The 2022 summer world juniors were a prime example of it. It was there, on the biggest stage of his career to date, that Greig displayed a ‘playoff style’ brand of hockey — the type that earns him the distinction as a heart and soul guy — while finishing with six points in five games. He’s a gamer, and you need guys like that come playoff time.

Looking onward to next season, there’s no question Greig is ready to be an everyday NHL player. But with the abundance of center depth Ottawa possesses — with a likely healthy Josh Norris, Tim Stutzle, Shane Pinto and Mark Kastelic — one has to wonder if Greig starts down the middle right off the get-go. 

It’s also possible that Greig starts next season as the No. 1 center for Belleville instead of playing bottom-six minutes, though at this point, that seems rather unlikely.

Nevertheless, it won’t be long before you see ‘Greig’ printed across Senators fans’ name bars.

“He’s a mini Brady Tkachuk,” Bell said. “He will agitate the other team. He’ll piss them off, but he’ll back it up, too and go score a goal. 

“He’s going to be a fan favorite, for sure.”