The story of the morning for the Colorado Avalanche was the health of Sven Andrighetto, who crashed hard into the boards in the third period Sunday night against the New York Islanders. As the Avs welcome in the Winnipeg Jets to the Pepsi Center tonight, there was an air of uncertainty about the status of the Swiss forward until he was officially ruled out by head coach Jared Bednar.
Taking his place in the lineup is the most recent call-up from the San Antonio Rampage, forward A.J. Greer, who will skate in his seventh game for the Avalanche this season. He has recorded one assist in his previous six games. In that time, he has also recorded 18 penalty minutes (albeit most of that came from one crazy night in Vegas). Now that he’s settled into the season, Greer is looking to prove he’s more of an all-around player than we’ve seen from him at the NHL level this season.
“Beginning of the season, I just came back from a concussion and I hadn’t played much,” Greer explained. “I was trying to do the simple things but I think now I’ve had some time in San Antonio and I’ve played big minutes there and had an offensive role down there. For me, it’s to bring that here and also to do the things that bring me here, which is playing physical, being a power forward but also playing with the puck more and helping my linemates in getting offensive opportunities on every shift.”
The offense will be expected from Greer as he slots into Andrighetto’s old spot on the left wing next to Alexander Kerfoot and Nail Yakupov, creating a dynamic line of skating ability, skill, and with Greer a little size. While he hopes to show some offense, don’t expect the hyper-competitive Greer to back down from a confrontation.
“I’m still going to keep that physicality but I’m going to bring more offensive grit,” Greer said. “I want to be in front of the net and play down low but have the puck more on my stick. Just be confident out there and trust my plays and have fun.”
Some have seen his time in San Antonio as a setback of sorts as the Avalanche have filled their roster with young prospects trying to make their mark in the NHL. With Greer in San Antonio, there was still more to learn and he feels it was certainly beneficial for his overall development.
“[His time in San Antonio] definitely was [good],” Greer stated. “We have a good team down there. Obviously, you want to be up here but when you look at it, it helps a lot to go down there and build your confidence and work on some aspects sometimes you don’t at the start here.”
For his part, Bednar is giving Greer a legitimate spot in the lineup tonight in order to make a meaningful contribution and not simply relegating him to automatic fourth line status.
“I think I have high expectations,” Bednar said of Greer. “He’s been up here on numerous occasions. We like what he’s done over short periods of time. I think he brings us a physical presence, a little sandpaper, but he has the skill to make plays and support those guys.”
The lineup is expected to be mostly the same as Sunday’s but with Greer obviously taking Andrighetto’s place. Semyon Varlamov will start in goal.
