The Ottawa Senators announced that they have signed forward Ridly Greig to a four-year deal worth an average annual value of $3.25 million.
Ridly Greig signs a four-year extension with the #sens carrying a $3.25M AAV.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) January 10, 2025
Greig was selected 28th overall in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft. The 22-year-old has six goals and 12 points through 37 games so far in the 2024-25 season.
After four full seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings, where Greig served as the team’s captain for a time, Greig made the transition to professional hockey, playing in 39 American Hockey League (AHL) games and 20 NHL games in his first season. In the AHL, Greig posted 29 points in 39 games. So far in his young NHL career, Greig has 21 goals and 47 points through 129 games.
Greig is a feisty center, and while he may not have the size of some of the toughest NHL players, he isn’t afraid to get into the mix with anybody. The Senators clearly value his tenacity, and with 26 points in his first full NHL season, he has shown flashes of good offensive play too.
Greig will make for a strong middle-six center throughout the course of this deal. While he can naturally play that position very well, the Senators have a logjam of centers right now, so he could end up on the wing as well.
In his time with the Senators, Greig has developed good chemistry with a number of players, including Claude Giroux and Shane Pinto.
This contract is a common case of paying now for what the player could be. There is a strong chance that by the end of the deal, Greig has taken a big enough step forward that he could be worth much more than the $3.25 million cap hit, but as of right now, it is a bit much for what he provides. Signing a young player who has yet to break out does come with some risk, but Greig has been on a great trajectory since being drafted, and the Senators are banking on him continuing that strong development and turning into a key piece of the top-nine forward group.
