Prospect Info: 2016 Leafs Pick - 72nd Overall (NJ) - J.D. Greenway - D - USNTDP [6-5/205]

[grapes55]

Can he go back to the NCAA after de-committing to play for the USHL? I didn't know that was possible.

I think he's transfering schools, in which case he would need to sit out a year so he'll be spending next season in the USHL in the meantime

 

[meefer]

Agreed.
It was night and day from his season. He was completely disengaged at camp.
Granato said he has been very physical since his return and they are using him again in all situations and he is a + on the year (small sample size) but he was also a plus in a 5-1 drubbing so he must be more focused than he was at camp.
Let's hope he follows Nietzsche and the philosophy: that which does not kill you only makes you stronger!!

Nietzsche...damn weze gettin highbrow now

 

[saltming]

Nietzsche...damn weze gettin highbrow now

Nietzsche? Pfft! That's Conan

 

[HC7]

Another awful Hunter pick.

A couple hundred more of these big D-Men that can't do shit and we should have our Chara.

 

[Slyfox]

Thank god we have no more Hunter drafting big dman over skilled players

 

[X66]

To be fair, Greenway is a skilled Dman.

It's his toolbox and hockey IQ that he's never been able to put together.

 

[lifelonghockeyfan]

Another awful Hunter pick.

A couple hundred more of these big D-Men that can't do **** and we should have our Chara.

I never got all this Hunter love. His drafting for a NHL team (the Leafs) hasn't been good (maybe not bad). And even the Knights, it isn't so much his drafting but the Knights ability to attract US players and have them play in London as opposed going to the NCAA.

 

[showtime8]

I think he's transfering schools, in which case he would need to sit out a year so he'll be spending next season in the USHL in the meantime

Ahhh. Thanks for the info.

I thought he was just transferring for the remainder of his junior career. Was it announced which school he's going to?

 

[Cor]

Kid had personal issues at Wisconsin, not a surprise. I do not expect him to get an ELC at this point.

Who would have thought that out of all the big/defensive d-men, Fedor Gordeev turns out to be the most likely to get signed.

 

[saltming]

When college players return to the USHL, it's often a precursor to a transfer to another school. Greenway has two seasons of NCAA eligibility remaining.

Greenway, 6-foot-5 and 215 pounds, was scheduled to be one of five defensemen returning to the Badgers' lineup in 2018-19 along with senior Peter Tischke and sophomores Wyatt Kalynuk, Tyler Inamoto and Josh Ess.

So he would be fighting for ice time with the badgers. I have not read that he is transferring schools. So maybe he is maybe he isn't?

His college career has been uneven at best as he learned the intricacies of defense, a position he didn't grow up playing.

After playing in all but one game in his freshman season, Greenway missed the Badgers' first 21 contests in 2017-18 and didn't participate fully in practice until November. Neither he nor Tony Granato fully divulged reasons for his absence.

"He just had some things off the ice, academically and some other things that we wanted to make sure were in a place where he could come back and be part of our team," Granato said when the Badgers returned for the second semester in January. "It was a thing between him and I."

Pretty cryptic but to me it sounds like the coach and he didn't agree.

 

[grapes55]

Ahhh. Thanks for the info.

I thought he was just transferring for the remainder of his junior career. Was it announced which school he's going to?

Happy to help!
I don't believe it's been announced unless I've missed something but we should probably hear something relatively soon

 

[DanM]

I never got all this Hunter love. His drafting for a NHL team (the Leafs) hasn't been good (maybe not bad). And even the Knights, it isn't so much his drafting but the Knights ability to attract US players and have them play in London as opposed going to the NCAA.

This

Honestly, I never saw Hunter as this player development guru.

Sure we have some late rounder on wing and potentially centre that look good, but overall his body of work is just "ok"

You are correct about London.

Also, every damn team in the league has been able to draft some sort of young Dmen, other than Lilly who fell to us, and Dermott, we have not been lighting the world on fire from the backend.

 

[xxOCZMSxx]

I don’t know much about him, but instead of wading thru 9 pages, anyone care to offer their expertise re: his prospect status and what today’s commitment to UofMaine means to his development.
Thanks

 

[saltming]

I don’t know much about him, but instead of wading thru 9 pages, anyone care to offer their expertise re: his prospect status and what today’s commitment to UofMaine means to his development.
Thanks

He has the tools and is a big man. If he gets a toolbox we hit a homerun.
Pretty sure he will get more ice time in Maine over Wisconsin. Hence the change.

 

[saltming]

So he would be fighting for ice time with the badgers. I have not read that he is transferring schools. So maybe he is maybe he isn't?

Pretty cryptic but to me it sounds like the coach and he didn't agree.

Looks like this was right. I still have hope for this guy. That package of size skating and hands demands patience

 

[SeaOfBlue]

He has the tools and is a big man. If he gets a toolbox we hit a homerun.
Pretty sure he will get more ice time in Maine over Wisconsin. Hence the change.

I think he still gets good ice time in Wisconsin. Just needed to do some maturing before being ready for the NCAA. He likely would have been fine had he taken a year in the USHL before going to the NCAA. Some guys just can not adjust right away, and that's why a lot of people take gap years before going to University (on top of making enough money to actually go).

 

[saltming]

I think he still gets good ice time in Wisconsin. Just needed to do some maturing before being ready for the NCAA. He likely would have been fine had he taken a year in the USHL before going to the NCAA. Some guys just can not adjust right away, and that's why a lot of people take gap years before going to University (on top of making enough money to actually go).

It's been a while but I read that his ice time was going down. I don't recall where I read that though so I say it with a grain of salt.

 

[saltming]

I think he still gets good ice time in Wisconsin. Just needed to do some maturing before being ready for the NCAA. He likely would have been fine had he taken a year in the USHL before going to the NCAA. Some guys just can not adjust right away, and that's why a lot of people take gap years before going to University (on top of making enough money to actually go).

He joined the University of Wisconsin Badgers in 2016-17 with high expectations, but had a difficult time transitioning his game to the college level. While he received the benefit of the doubt as a highly-recruited freshman, he didn’t enjoy that same benefit in year two when his problems persisted and he lost ice time and trust of the coaching staff.

This was just written

J.D. Greenway Commits To The University Of Maine

 

[93LEAFS]

He's a write-off at this point. I heard he looked terrible at the USHL Fall Classic. Bound to happen. 3rd rounders are always long-shots. I wish we picked someone better, but 2016 is still tracking pretty good for us. Matthews is Matthews. Grundstrom looks likely to fill a grinding role in Babcock's top 9. Who know's what Korshkov is. I'm generally happy with a draft class if you get two NHLers that can be among your top 9 forwards, top 5 defenders or a starting goalie. Obviously, a higher standard is expected from a high pick, such as Matthews or Marner, but if you hit on them as 1st liners or all stars, getting a 2nd of what I listed is a win. Obviously, I would be happier if we somehow got Bratt where we drafted Greenway, and took Debrincat and Girard over Korshkov, but I'm not expecting perfection.

 

[saltming]

He's a write-off at this point. I heard he looked terrible at the USHL Fall Classic. Bound to happen. 3rd rounders are always long-shots. I wish we picked someone better, but 2016 is still tracking pretty good for us. Matthews is Matthews. Grundstrom looks likely to fill a grinding role in Babcock's top 9. Who know's what Korshkov is. I'm generally happy with a draft class if you get two NHLers that can be among your top 9 forwards, top 5 defenders or a starting goalie. Obviously, a higher standard is expected from a high pick, such as Matthews or Marner, but if you hit on them as 1st liners or all stars, getting a 2nd of what I listed is a win. Obviously, I would be happier if we somehow got Bratt where we drafted Greenway, and took Debrincat and Girard over Korshkov, but I'm not expecting perfection.

In 17 games with Dubuque, Greenway leads all defensemen in points, power play production, and shots, looking comfortable as an offensive asset again.

That sounds like he's doing well overall

 

[93LEAFS]

That sounds like he's doing well overall

Pretty much any player who is elite leaves the USHL at 18, most at 17. Greenway is 20. Every defender above him in points is undrafted. I have no idea on how many NHLers played in the USHL at 20, but I would expect it to be a tiny list. Pretty much any prospect from the 2016 draft with a realistic chance to make the NHL at this point is either in the AHL, still in college or playing overseas.

 

[saltming]

Pretty much any player who is elite leaves the USHL at 18, most at 17. Greenway is 20. Every defender above him in points is undrafted. I have no idea on how many NHLers played in the USHL at 20, but I would expect it to be a tiny list. Pretty much any prospect from the 2016 draft with a realistic chance to make the NHL at this point is either in the AHL, still in college or playing overseas.

I'm not saying he's not a long shot still, but he isn't a bust yet is all.
Let's see how he does at in Maine and reevaluate

 

[93LEAFS]

I'm not saying he's not a long shot still, but he isn't a bust yet is all.
Let's see how he does at in Maine and reevaluate

I'd write him off. I don't think he gets a contract, and his rights expire in 2 years (so he needs to be really good with Maine to earn an ELC). The only successful player I can think of who played there at 20, who was a late-emerging prospect. Not someone like Greenway who was part of elite programs throughout most of his life. Someone who has an NHL future playing in the USHL at 20, should be the most dominate player in the league by a good margin.

edit: and the only reason Montour was there, was he was waiting to be cleared by the NCAA to be allowed to play at UMass-Amherst, where he dominated in the 2nd half of the season once he was cleared.

 

[4thline]

Agree with 93. There's always a chance he blows up in his final two years at Maine, but we have to be realistic. He's the same age as Middleton, who we didn't sign coming off a year as one of the best defensive defencemen in the OHL and is now on pace for 30 points as an AHL rookie. The bar is high.

 

[57special]

I thought he looked good, and sometimes very good, at Wisconsin, but they were not a good team overall. I suspect that his leaving the team had more to do with off ice adjustments, such as academics...