Jet Greaves ProRead 3
With Jet Greaves
Short Side or Far Side? Keys to Managing Post Play Reads
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Jet Greaves was named to the American Hockey League All-Star Game after a record-setting start to his NHL career with 119 saves through three starts for the Columbus Blue Jackets, so now seemed a perfect week to run a bonus Pro Reads with the insightful young goalie.
Greaves, who has a .934 save percentage through three NHL games and is 17-5-1 with a .911 in the AHL, broke down his memorable NHL debut against the hometown Toronto Maple Leafs team he grew up cheering during our time with him in Montreal in the summer.
THE SEQUENCE
After making his Pro Reads debut with a 3-on-3 rush, Greaves broke down some net play in his second entry, and is facing a similar type of play behind the net again this time:
As the puck is cycled down low behind the net to Mitch Marner, what information are you looking for as a goalie? Where is your focus at this point? Marner has the puck in the freeze frame above, but what do you notice about Greaves in this moment?
Have you identified the most dangerous threat yet?
What information are you looking for?
THE SAVE
Now watch the entire save sequence below and ask yourself the same questions:
Did you see the early look Greaves made while Marner was behind the net?
What information do you think he was looking for?
What did you think of how Greaves played this?
Can you see any links between those two things?
THE PRO READ
Now let’s hear from Greaves on what he saw on this play and how he managed it:
As Greaves said, this play is similar to his last breakdown and starts when the puck is rimmed.
“When the puck gets [behind the net] he’s not an attacking net threat so this check up the ice is really important because you can see what’s going on [short-side] and see in your peripherals where the play is,” Greaces said. “(Looking off the puck is) huge. I try to look off as much as I can. Anytime backs are turned or guys aren’t in a position to attack the net, understanding what’s happening is so important to reading the play and how it’s going to develop.”
Greaves said he could be in reverse on his right post sooner but his read was short side.
“What’s really important on this play is on this pass coming out is using the back leg to push and keeping everything on the short side,” Greaves said. “The tendency is to use your post leg to push to cover the far side but the biggest threat on this play is the short side. It’s an easier shot to hit on the short side and the net is taller on the short side.”
You can see Greaves get his head down and onto the pass out front quickly: “For me it’s about seeing the stick blade and just getting to a quiet spot … it simplifies the save.”
Greaves made quite the impression on the InGoal crew during a summer event hosted by CCM in Montreal, and again on the ice after getting invited to skate with Devon Levi at a private rink nearby afterward, and we have lots more coming from our time together there, including video from some ice sessions with Devon Levi and his coach Marco Raimondo, equipment insights and tips from the locker room of a CCM shoot earlier in the week, and more video breakdowns.
Stay tuned for more soon, but in the meantime check out this drill and his two Pro Reads:
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- Jet Greaves breaks down his save on a Mitch Marner cycle play from his NHL debut against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
- When the puck is rimmed behind the net, Greaves deliberately looks off the puck to check short-side, using peripheral vision to track the full play before a threat emerges.
- Greaves identifies any moment when opponents have their backs turned or are not in a position to attack as a critical window to gather information on the ice.
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