When Lindy Ruff needs a strong shift away from the puck, he knows he can rely on Jordan Greenway.
The 27-year-old winger earned first-star honors in a 5-2 win against Florida on Saturday, when he blocked three shots, scored a goal, and finished with a plus-4 rating, giving Ruff good reason to call on him.
“[He’s] winning battles, beating guys to the net,” Ruff said. “You look at the goal, beat his guy back to the net, scored a real nice, in-tight goal. [He] probably had the best opportunity to get another [goal] off the backside. Penalty killing has been strong, so I’ve really liked his game.”
Greenway leads Sabres forwards in shorthanded ice time, helping the team to a 10-for-13 start in that department, and ranks second on the team with 12 hits. The Sabres have out-chanced opponents 29-17 when he's been on the ice at 5-on-5 this season, according to Natural Stat Trick.
“He’s a very strong defensive player,” Ruff said. “His knowledge of the game and the understanding of where the next play is going to be. He’s always on the right side of the puck. He’s always doing the right thing.”
Here’s more from Tuesday’s practice:
