Confident A.J. Greer impresses in unfamiliar situations

When you first meet A.J. Greer, you can’t help but notice his endless supply of confidence. Given his meteoric rise from third line minutes at Boston University this time last year to playing in his first NHL game tonight, it’s no surprise that constant belief in himself drives him.

“Personally, I think I did really well,” Greer said. “I gave my 100%. I tried to stick to the systems and do what the coach told me to do before the game and what we practiced. I think, personally, I was really satisfied with my effort and what I did out there.”

Even for a guy who seemed to shrug off the pressures of his first NHL ice time, Greer allowed himself to soak in the experience and cherish the moment.

“It’s my first pro game so I have a lot to learn but it was a fun moment and it’s definitely a game I’ll remember my whole life,” Greer told BSN Denver.

While Greer was relatively limited in his even strength ice time, it was what he did on the penalty kill that caught everyone’s attention. In a bit of a surprise, it was a role he has not played in quite a while.

“It’s been about three years since I’ve played the PK,” Greer admitted. “Getting out there, it feels really good just to kill a penalty and get back to those old habits. I think I did really, really well there in that aspect of the game just because I haven’t practiced it a whole lot the last few years. I was really proud of myself there.”

Greer plays an abrasive, physical style that is all about getting north and south as quickly as possible and creating chaos.When asked if his particular brand of hockey is a natural fit on the penalty kill, Greer quickly noted it was the key to his success.

“I think I can use (my playstyle) to my advantage,” Greer intimated. “They gave me a shot and I think I did pretty well at it. Whenever they will give me an opportunityI just gotta take it and run with it.”

To that last point, he certainly succeeded in running with his opportunity as his strong forecheck not only created issues for the Dallas Stars but caught the attention of his coach, Jared Bednar.

“As you see guys that are kind of stepping up and helping carry the load you want to reward them with some ice time, especially when they’re competing for a job, Bednar stated. “I thought he did a nice job tonight. He’s young, he’s going to make some mistakes but he’s making them going fast out there.”

That wasn’t the end of Bednar’s praise for the young Greer, however, as he had more to say about a player who would seem to be a longshot to make the opening night roster but is clearly finding a way to stand out among the crowded field.

“One thing I like about A.J. is he skates,” head coach Jared Bednar said.” He’s a fast guy, a long guy. He’s always sticking his nose in there and competing at the point of the puck and I thought early in the first period a couple of those young guys were giving us a little bit of juice.”

Greer is also a very cerebral player and while he occasionally allowed the emotion of the game to overtake him in juniors, leading to silly penalties and mental mistakes that hurt his team, he still pays close attention to what’s going on around him. Instead of using his lack of recent penalty killing experience as an excuse he gobbled up the coaching provided and paid close attention to his teammates.

“You learn from the guys next to you,” Greer explained. “You’re on the bench and you watch those guys play and you kind of want to dial in and make sure you do those things that they do. Even if I haven’t played in three years, you always catch up and you know what to do, basically. When you get out there and you get your chance like I did, I was ready.”

While Greer ultimately may not prove to be quite ready for the pro game, you can tell from his strong opening showing and confidence in himself it won’t be long before he’s made himself a permanent fixture in Denver.