If the Blackhawks have had one steady source of good news early this season, it’s been the fourth line. Jordan Greenway, Cole Smith and Ryan Greene have given Chicago something it can trust shift after shift, and Greenway has settled in quickly after arriving from the Buffalo Sabres with Bowen Byram.
That was exactly the kind of addition the Blackhawks were after when they brought in the 29-year-old. They wanted help in the bottom six, and Greenway fits that ask cleanly: penalty killing experience, a hard forecheck and enough physical edge to change the feel of a line. So far, that’s showing up.
Greenway also arrives with a healthier body than he had in Buffalo. He said before facing the Sabres on Oct.
3, "I feel great. I'm playing with no pain, and it's not something that I've been able to say for a long time.
So I'm more than excited with just being able to play, go out there, and not have to deal with this and that. So, it's great."
The production has followed the comfort. Greenway scored Chicago’s first goal of the season against the Vegas Golden Knights on Sept. 29 and has one point in four games. He’s plus-1, leads the team with nine shots and eight hits, and has logged 14:09 of ice time per game.
The bigger story, though, is how quickly he has clicked with Smith and Greene. That trio has been a training camp success story, and the numbers back up what the eye test suggests.
According to Natural Stat Trick, the three have played 41:49 together this season without allowing a goal. Chicago, meanwhile, has given up 17 goals in four games.
At practice on Oct. 7, Greenway was asked what has made the line work so well.
He said, "I think... pretty simple, you know..." He continued about playing the last two years: "Being able to, like, find my legs and my game has been a process, and with Smitty and Greener on the forecheck, we're kind of all in sync right now.
We didn't get a lot last game, truthfully. But I think we've been good overall.
Yeah, just keeping it simple, playing my type of game."
That simplicity is the key. Greenway explained that the line’s strength comes from knowing what’s coming next: "(Being) predictable.
We know what everyone's going to do when we're out there, which makes things a lot easier for everyone else. Sometimes, I think, as a team, as a line, whatever, when you get away from that, things can become a little bit more difficult and unexpected, and it just makes for more variables.
So we try and keep it pretty simple. I keep using that word, but that's really what's given us success."
He doubled down on the same idea when talking about why the trio has meshed so fast: "It's so easy to overcomplicate the game and make it harder on yourselves with turnovers and just going off-script a little bit. Smitty, obviously, has been around for a while.
[He] plays kind of an older school type of game. As do I.
And Greener fits in perfectly. He supports the puck really well.
Obviously, has a lot of skill. Skates well, so it's been good."
Greenway’s value has gone beyond the scoreboard and the shot totals. Head coach Jeff Blashill was just as strong in his assessment on Oct. 3, saying, "I love him.
I had a chance to coach Jordan a long time ago at the World Championships when he was first coming out of college, I believe. Or he was early in his career, at least, and he's a great person to be around.
He's got a great personality. He's fun, but he's also dialed in, and he wants to win, and I would say he's able to kind of hold each guy accountable with a gentle nature, and I think that's a great presence for a guy that has some veteran experience.
But he's been a really good player for us, so I'm a big fan."
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