At the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, the Los Angeles Kings selected left-shot, Right-Winger, Liam Greentree from the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) Windsor Spitfires with their first-round pick. A few months later, he got his first taste of NHL action in the Kings’ preseason opener against the Utah Hockey Club, finishing with 11:06 TOI and a +1 rating.
One note Greentree took away from his brief stint with LA was that, unlike in Windsor, he doesn’t have to do the work of five players.
“[E]veryone knows their role and does […] their job. [T]hat was huge to see because it encourages me to be myself and play my game and no one else’s,” said Greentree.
Born January 1, 2006, Greentree was required to return to the OHL because he did not make the Kings’ opening night roster. The Canadian Hockey League (which the OHL is a member of) prohibits players under the age of twenty to make the jump to a professional league. An interesting note about Greentree – and when I say, “interesting,” I mean an all-around bummer – is that, so long as the player is twenty-years-old by December 31st, they can make the jump to a professional league. Missing the cut off by a mere twenty-four hours means Greentree could end up in Windsor again, next season, further hampering his development.
This is not an indictment of the Spitfires, who are utilizing a talented young player as they see fit. Rather, it illustrates the professional development Greentree isn’t receiving.
For instance, a big knock against Greentree has been his skating. If he were currently under the Kings’ umbrella, their development staff could certainly hone in on and help him correct this. Greentree has stated that the Windsor Spitfires’ head coach, Greg Walters, has taken a special interest in helping him fix some of the little details and nuances of his game. But, that’s one coach compared to a staff of nearly a dozen who are hired specifically to develop the next wave of Kings prospects.
Marco Sturm, head coach of the AHL’s Ontario Reign, had a chance to coach Greentree during the 2024 LA Kings’ Rookie Faceoff tournament, in September. Sturm was, “pleasantly surprised,” by Greentree’s size, exclaiming, “[h]e’s a big kid!” Given Greentree’s stature as a 6’3″, 215 pound power forward, using his size to play physical away from the puck is paramount. In Windsor however, there’s a strong push to keep the puck on his stick to generate offense.
This is glaringly obvious on Windsor’s power play.
Greentree is forced to move about the offensive zone to tie up loose ends rather than getting to his position, planting, and firing like he would in a professional league where everyone’s held accountable. Free roaming does happen on an NHL power play but not in the way that clip played out. More times than not, an NHL penalty kill unit will hold their position, so catching a defender napping and walking to the net is a rarity.
From what I’ve seen this season, Greentree is once again doing the work of five players rather than simply playing his part. Even with the addition of promising up-and-coming forward Ethan Belchetz, the Spitfires are relying on Greentree to captain a crew while simultaneously keeping the pistons pumping, the dinner plates serving, and avoiding any icebergs along the way. In fact, even if/when the ship hits the iceberg, Greentree will probably be asked to pick up a violin and play through the chaos.
Unless there’s some kind of “Get Out of Jail Free” card that promotes Greentree to the AHL next season, his path to the NHL may be littered with potholes. Windsor is getting as many miles out Greentree as they can, ultimately leaving the LA Kings’ development staff to repair the damage.
