2020 Flames First Round Targets: Ridly Greig
By Mike Wilson
3 years agoThe 2020 NHL Draft is scheduled for October 6 and 7, conducted remotely. The Calgary Flames have a first-round selection and will pick 19th overall. In advance of the draft, we’ll be looking at some contenders to be selected at 19th.
Our last check-in is with Brandon Wheat Kings forward, and son of a former Flame, Ridly Greig.
Scouting Report
Ridly Greig is a name ripped out of Batman’s rogues’ gallery or something else fantastical.
The pesky Lethbridge native and son of former NHLer Mark Greig has earned himself quite the reputation in the Western Hockey League. The Brandon Wheat Kings forward played in all situations this season under head coach Dave Lowry and garnered attention for his notable ability to drive other players mad.
Greig’s unique combination of skill, hard-nosed aggression, and possession game makes him an interesting prospect for any club looking for an effective two-way forward.
Tony Ferrari of Dobber Prospects speaks to Greig’s blend of shift disturbing and offensive play:
Other teams will hate him but his team loves him. He finds space in the offensive zone to take advantage of the opposition’s defensive shortcomings. He projects as a middle-six scorer who will be a thorn in the side of the opposition.
Former Flame and current Wheat Kings coach Dave Lowry emphasized Greig’s strengths and growth this season:
He has an understanding of the commitment that you have to make to be a player. Some guys just show up and think they’re going to play hockey and other guys want to become hockey players. It’s a year-round project now and the guys that are successful are the guys that commit to the daily grind to be an elite player… I put him in the position to be the No. 1 centreman on our team and he was going to play against other teams’ older guys. He got better every game and he never looked back.
Now, it would be a mistake to draft a player solely based on intangibles, surely. However, beyond his willingness to compete within the fabric of the game Greig’s ability to contribute in all game situations, drive play, and offensive skillset make him an interesting target for scouts. He’s a pain in the neck for reasons beyond the extracurricular activities.
Again, Greig was a contributor in all aspects of the game with the Wheat Kings last year. He put up forty points on the power play and was relied on to lead the penalty kill (helping Brandon to the second-best kill rate in the league).
With the puck, Greig owns undeniable and potentially high-end skill. He’s a deceptive shooter, uses his speed to create off the rush, and is able to control possession in the offensive zone. His skill in the playmaking department is strong as well. Steve Kourniaos of the Draft Analyst reports:
Greig’s puck skills and decision making on or off the puck are very impressive. He has soft hands and can control the puck in traffic while maintaining situational awareness.
The Alberta kid has some knocks on his discipline (he led the WHL in PIMs for first-year eligible forwards). His work in the faceoff dot also will need to be addressed for him to be an everyday NHL centreman. Overall he has shown to be a wickedly competitive play driving forward with a deceptively strong shot and creative playmaking ability.
The numbers
In his first full year in the Western League Greig put up some nice numbers and finished 12th among rookie skaters in 2018-19. Last season head coach Lowry moved Greig to centre full time (having previously split time on the left-wing) and his production jumped to over a point per game.
| Season | Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM | SOG | P/G |
| 2017-18 | Brandon Wheat Kings | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0.25 |
| 2018-19 | Brandon Wheat Kings | 63 | 14 | 21 | 35 | 57 | 124 | 0.56 |
| 2019-20 | Brandon Wheat Kings | 56 | 26 | 34 | 60 | 83 | 199 | 1.07 |
He grades out competitively amongst first-year draft-eligible WHL skaters this season in primary points per game as well.
| PLAYER | P1/GP |
| Seth Jarvis | 1.2759 |
| Connor Zary | 1.1404 |
| Tristen Robins | 0.9194 |
| Pavel Novak | 0.9091 |
| Ridly Greig | 0.8929 |
| Ozzy Wiesblatt | 0.875 |
| Kyle Crnkovic | 0.8095 |
| Connor McClennon | 0.8095 |
| Justin Sourdif | 0.7368 |
| Jake Neighbours | 0.7031 |
Greig also had a solid showing at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup putting up two goals over five games for Canada.
Availability and fit
He’s another player who seems to lack consensus as to where he’ll end up being picked. Analysts like Corey Pronman have him pegged at 37th overall, Mckeen’s Hockey ranks him 24th, while Sam Cosentino has him at 22. With so many highly skilled forwards available this year Greig will likely still be on the board at 19.
Is he the type of player the Flames would take a chance on? It depends. Again, successful drafting doesn’t find a basis in selections based on intangibles. But if the Flames think Greig’s accompanying skill and two-way game projects well then he’s a player cut from the same cloth as a guy like Matthew Tkachuk.
He seems like a safe bet to be an everyday NHLer but the question of overall impactfulness can translate to the big league is still lingering.
2020 First Round Targets
Braden Schneider | Kaiden Guhle | Seth Jarvis | Connor Zary | Jacob Perreault | Noel Gunler | Lukas Reichel | Dylan Holloway | Hendrix Lapierre | Jan Myšák | Jake Neighbours | Mavrik Bourque | Ozzy Wiesblatt | John-Jason Peterka | Yaroslav Askarov | Tyson Foerster | Helge Grans | Rodian Amirov | William Wallinder | Justin Barron
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