His game winning goal against Yale by stepping up into the high slot after his first attempt got blocked to shoot with accuracy is exactly what I want to see more of from him. There aren’t many defenders in this draft class who play with more poise and confidence than him as he can see the pressure coming, burst through it, or find proper lead passes to spring his forwards. In these games I thought he was pinching very effectively, gaining the zone himself off the rush at times, and hitting the mark on his outlet passes. It is often those little hesitation plays that make the angles of the passes work. There are players like him that are filled with smarts, efficiency, and effective two-way play that often find themselves settling their offensive creativity at the next levels due to not being the biggest or having the heaviest release. It won’t change how effective he is positionally or how effective his breakout passing is. He’s such an easy player to like.

Greschuk is my kind of player, standing out as a dynamic two-way defender with a complete toolkit at both ends of the ice. He is a creative force from the back end, making plays at the offensive blueline, using his active feet and puck confidence to break down the opposition’s defensive structure. His shiftiness and head-up approach allow him to make smart outlets and maintain possession under pressure, consistently pushing the pace of play for his team. On the defensive end, Greschuk shines as an elite rush defender. He leads with his stick to angle attackers to the wall before finishing with physicality. He shows excellent timing in his engagements, managing to stay consistently aggressive without selling out his positioning. It is immensely difficult to gain the offensive zone cleanly against him as he is so potent in plugging up the neutral zone. The ice was tilted firmly up ice when Greschuk was on the ice in this tournament and I’m excited to see how high he can elevate his game throughout the season. He’s an early favourite for me.