Greening Rewarded, Remains with Ottawa

By Rob Brodie
OttawaSenators.com

Ottawa Senators general manager Bryan Murray announced today the re-signing of former Cornell forward Colin Greening to a three-year deal with the organization.

The new contract is a one-way deal, meaning the future is indeed now for Greening, who currently is with the Binghamton Senators and has helped the Ottawa's American Hockey League affiliate reach the Calder Cup final for the first time in franchise history.

Greening, a 25-year-old native of St. John's, started the season on the farm but spent most of the final six weeks of the campaign in Ottawa after the Senators dealt away six veterans before the National Hockey League's March 1 trade deadline, signalling a shift to a more youthful future. In Binghamton, he ranked second among rookies with 40 points (15-25) in 59 games.

In his first season with the big club, Greening recorded six goals and 13 points. He made his NHL debut Feb. 1 in Newark, N.J., against the Devils and recorded his first career goal in a March 3 road contest against the Atlanta Thrashers. The 6-3, 211-pound Greening, a seventh-round pick (204th overall) by the Senators in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, is projected to fill a power forward role in Ottawa.

"He’s a player that we thought would take a little more time (to develop)," Murray said of Greening. "But the opportunity after the trade deadline to play games in Ottawa helped him a great deal. His skating, his size and his strength are his biggest assets. He knows how to check, he’s a willing worker ... we think he can be a regular player in Ottawa next year."

Murray and the Senators were also impressed with the way Greening quickly developed chemistry with No. 1 centre Jason Spezza, when the two spent much of the final month of the season on a line with rookie sniper Bobby Butler.

"We thought Colin was going to be a checking, hard-working kind of player," said Murray. "But he showed a lot of offensive flair when he played with Jason Spezza in Ottawa when he got a chance to play here. He played both ends of the rink real well but just as important, he showed the ability to create space and the opportunity to get offence going for his line. 

"So we like the versatility and the size that he brings, but maybe we have a player that will get a few more points than we suggested he might (produce) early on."

Though he played 24 games for the Senators this season, Greening remains eligible in 2011-12 for the Calder Trophy, which is awarded to the NHL's top rookie.