Conor Geekie is back at Lightning camp for the third time, and this one feels different.
The 22-year-old says he’s carrying more confidence into this training camp, along with a better understanding of the road that’s brought him here. He’s already become a favorite around Tampa Bay, and now he’s trying to take the next step after two seasons of learning, adjusting and growing.
That growth didn’t happen overnight. Moving between the NHL and the AHL was a tough transition at first, but the Lightning believed he needed the extra time. Geekie says that stretch in Syracuse helped him develop not just as a player, but as a person, and he points to Crunch head coach Joel Bouchard as a major part of that progress.
“We see eye to eye on a lot of things,” Geekie said of Bouchard. “Sometimes we’ve bumped heads, but that’s what a good player and coach relationship is.
He put a lot of trust in me, and that goes a long way for me. I think it’s helped me grow just as a person in general.”
Geekie also believes his skating has come a long way.
“It definitely got a lot better,” Geekie said of his skating. “I’m hoping it explains itself.
I think you could probably see it. At the end of the day, I’ve just got to come in and do it on the ice and in the games.”
For Geekie, confidence has been the key. He says he plays his best hockey when he feels good about his game, and that the last two years in Syracuse gave him that platform.
“I play my best when I’m confident. Being in Syracuse the last two years, that’s when I played some of my best games.
Coming here, I’m just trying to bring that same attitude and be confident, be comfortable. Don’t be afraid to mess up, kind of thing.”
Bouchard has watched that development up close, and he sees a player who’s eager to improve and serious about getting there.
“He’s a passionate hockey player and he wants to do well. He wants to be the guy and he takes the game very seriously.
He's still one of those young guys that's getting better and better. He's willing to put the effort in and to try to understand.“
He also described Geekie as someone who lives and breathes the sport.
“He’s very grounded,” he added. “Loves hockey.
He watches hockey all the time. He’ll come to me in the morning and say, ‘Bouch, did you see that face-off play in the Minnesota-Boston game last night?’
I like that. He’s just a joy to be around.”
With the NHL preseason trimmed to four games this year, Lightning head coach Jon Cooper gets an early look at Geekie and the rest of the roster starting Sunday against the Nashville Predators.
Geekie has made Tampa Bay’s opening-night roster in each of the last two seasons. Now, with centers Yanni Gourde and Dominic James both sidelined by injury, there’s a clear path for him to do it again.
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