The LA Kings have made their first selection of the 2024 NHL Draft, their first pick in the round in three year, taking winger Liam Greentree from the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL.
The Vitals
Position: Winger
Shoots: Left
DOB: January 1, 2006
Height: 6-2
Weight: 214
Hometown: Oshawa, ONT
NHL Central Scouting Final Ranking: 14 (North American Skaters)
TSN/Bob NcKenzie’s Final Ranking: 18
EliteProspects’s Final Ranking: 15
Sam Cosentino/Sportsnet’s Final Ranking: 15
Stats (White Tigers Liberec): 64 GP, 36G, 54A, 90PTS, 33PIM, -14
What The Experts Said
Rachel Doerrie, ESPN
Greentree has many attributes that scouts love — he plays in the middle of the ice, sees the ice very well, is an adept playmaker and a throwback build in the style of a power forward. He ranks highly across the board from his physical game to his hockey sense to his high-end playmaking. He lacks in the most important, yet most easily improvable, area: skating. Were Greentree an average or slightly above average skater, we’re likely talking about him as a potential top-10 pick because he’s that good in the other areas of his game.
Elite Prospects Draft Guide
Greentree navigates his way around opponents with a series of look-offs, give-and-goes, and a sophisticated delay game that allows him to problem-solve his way around numbers off the rush. He’s constantly scanning, registering his options and the obstacles that would keep him from getting them the puck.
Chris Peters, FloHockey
Player Comparable – Jason Robertson
A lot of the things that raised concerns about Jason Robertson’s game as a prospect – poor skating and not being outwardly competitive with consistency – are being voiced for Greentree. However, Greentree also has clear high-end offensive skill and excellent hockey sense with the puck on his stick to go along with a big frame. As Robertson showed in his career, if you think the game fast enough, the feet concerns can be minimized.
Quick Take – Greentree adds an offensive presence to the LA Kings prospect pool. Heck of an offensive player who produced on a lower-level team in the OHL and was a leader at a young age for the OHL. Arguably becomes the highest-ceiling offensive prospect in the system for the Kings, on a team that has picked two-way forwards and defensemen higher in drafts of late. A player ranked in the teens by many scouting services, the Kings get Greentree at 26 when he was mocked to them at 21 in various mock drafts. Good value to net a highly-regarded prospect and add the additional two picks in doing so.
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