Greenway ranks among NHL's best in shorthanded situations

CHICAGO – Jordan Greenway feels he and his fellow penalty killers on the Buffalo Sabres have taken the ice with confidence when shorthanded situations have arisen this season.

“Full confidence, truthfully, I would say,” Greenway said Tuesday. “I don’t know what our percentage is or where we’re at in the league, but I do know we’ve done a lot of things to get some momentum swings in our favor because we don’t give up a goal or we don’t give them anything.

“So, that’s been great for us. So yeah, we should have full confidence in it. There’s no reason why we shouldn’t.”

The Sabres’ penalty kill ranks eighth in the NHL at 85.3 percent following a 3-for-3 night in their victory over the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday. Greenway skated 3:24 shorthanded in that game, second on the team to defenseman Erik Johnson.

Greenway was alerted early this season by the Sabres' coaching staff that the penalty kill would be a significant component to his role in Buffalo. The 6-foot-6 forward had been used only sparingly in shorthanded situations during his tenure with the Minnesota Wild.

Sabres coach Don Granato – who knew Greenway well from their shared time with the U.S. National Development team – saw Greenway’s package of size, mobility, and defensive detail as qualities that would make him an asset shorthanded.

“He covers a lot of range,” Granato said. “But he has such a base knowledge and reads plays from a defensive standpoint.

“… He’s hungry defensively, he takes a lot of pride in his defense. And obviously the athleticism, like I mentioned, the reach and agility and mobility that he has for a guy that size are all key to him helping us on the penalty kill.”

Greenway has been among the first four players on the ice for most penalty kills this season, typically alongside Johnson, Mattias Samuelsson, and – until his recent injury – Tage Thompson. He ranks second among NHL forwards with 61:34 of shorthanded ice time, according to Natural Stat Trick.

Greenway has been on the ice for just four power-play goals against – tied with Dallas defenseman Jani Hakanpaa for the lowest mark in the league among players with at least 60 minutes played shorthanded.

“It’s been great,” he said. “It’s a big part of the game and for the coaches to trust me out there in those situations to get the job done as much as they have, it’s great. It’s a good role for myself.”

Here are more notes from Tuesday’s practice.

1. Johnson leads NHL players in shorthanded ice time at 75:16 and has been instrumental to the Sabres’ improvement on the penalty kill, one of the factors that played into Buffalo’s decision to pursue the veteran defenseman in free agency this past summer.

“He’s probably been PKing a lot longer than a lot of us,” Greenway said. “He’s got a lot of knowledge around that. He’s taken the entire thing by the reigns and he’s given everyone the confidence that I talked about.”

2. The Sabres took the ice at Fifth Third Arena in Chicago before departing for their road trip finale in Washington on Wednesday. Here’s how the group lined up:

FORWARDS

53 Jeff Skinner – 24 Dylan Cozens – 89 Alex Tuch

9 Zach Benson – 37 Casey Mittelstadt – 77 JJ Peterka

12 Jordan Greenway – 17 Tyson Jost – 71 Victor Olofsson

28 Zemgus Girgensons – 19 Peyton Krebs – 21 Kyle Okposo

DEFENSEMEN

26 Rasmus Dahlin – 23 Mattias Samuelsson

25 Owen Power – 33 Ryan Johnson

75 Connor Clifton – 6 Erik Johnson

78 Jacob Bryson – 10 Henri Jokiharju

GOALIES

1 Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

27 Devon Levi

31 Eric Comrie

3. Zach Benson has two assists in two games since returning from a lower-body injury and four assists in eight games this season. The rookie forward is allowed to play up to nine games without counting toward his entry-level NHL contract, after which he can either remain with the Sabres on the first year of his deal or return to the Western Hockey League’s Wenatchee Wild alongside fellow prospect Matt Savoie.

Benson has said he is keeping his focus on the moment at hand, a point Granato reiterated after practice.

“Zach is a pretty focused kid and he just loves to play the game, so I don’t have much concern,” Granato said. “He’s going to be ready to play, again, just through his passion and love for the game.”