Liam Greentree has first-hand experience in how much of a roller coaster the Ontario Hockey League can be.
After being drafted 34th overall by the Windsor Spitfires in the 2022 OHL Draft, he was part of a team that finished first in the Western Conference with a 44-18-6 record during the 2022-23 campaign
Windsor then suffered a stunning first-round defeat at the hands of the eighth-seeded Kitchener Rangers in the playoffs, which led to the team rethinking its future.
The following season saw headline players like Wyatt Johnston and Shane Wright join NHL organizations, and the team made numerous trades to acquire younger players and draft picks to recoup assets from previous playoff runs.
This led to the team finishing last in the OHL with an 18-42-8 record, only the third time Windsor has missed the playoffs since the 2008-2009 campaign.
One of the lone bright spots for the Spitfires last season was the play of Greentree, who was thrust into a leadership position and found his form offensively.
The 6-foot-2 winger was named captain shortly after the trade deadline in January of 2024 and went on to finish 12th in league scoring with 36 goals and 90 points in 64 games.
He was able to use his personal success as a catalyst to get selected 26th overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the 2024 NHL Draft.
"Last year was a really tough year," said Greentree. "I think there were a lot of ups and downs and for me, the biggest thing was learning how to manage a team that had a losing record."
While finishing last in the league was not a fun experience, Greentree feels aspects of that tough period can help in his immediate future with the Spitfires and beyond.
"A lot of it plays into being able to manage my emotions after a loss," said Greentree. "That's something I became pretty good at, especially since it was my draft year, and I couldn't afford to 'lose it.'
"The biggest thing is to try to lead by example and do the right things every day – whether things are going good or not. I think that the biggest thing was just to do the little things –even when things aren't going right."
Greentree had the opportunity to get his first taste of NHL action when he joined the Kings for their training camp this summer. He used that time to study a veteran team that includes future Hall of Famers like Drew Doughty and Anze Kopitar.
One of the things that Greentree took away from his experience was the Kings' focus on the smaller details of the game that aren't necessarily recognizable unless you watch closely.
It was something he took back to junior with him as part of the leadership core of the Spitfires and tried to incorporate into the team's culture.
"The biggest thing with [Kopitar and Doughty] is that they always work hard and do the little details," said Greentree. "That's what it takes to be really good at the next level. It's a lot of things you don't really think about, like stick details, wall play, and little things like that which play a huge part in the next level.
"Those are things that I'm trying to implement into Windsor's culture and what we work on."
Those lessons were put to good use as Greentree has led the Spitfires back into contention this season with a 45-16-6 record, winning the West Division.
Greentree's offensive development has continued, sitting third in scoring with 49 goals and 119 points in 64 games.
Combined with the leadership of new head coach Greg Walters and the emergence of CHL import and Washington Capitals prospect Ilya Protas, the Spitfires are back to being contenders in the West.
"I think a lot of the guys who are still here from last year learned from that," said Greentree. "We hate to lose, and I think that plays a lot into the culture that we've built and what we want to do this year."
Greentree's impact the last two seasons has led TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button to rank him No. 10 on his Top 50 NHL-Affiliated Prospects List. Despite his success, he wasn't invited to Team Canada's selection camp for the 2025 World Juniors in Ottawa.
While disappointed, Greentree revealed that his exclusion is something he can use as a motivation.
"Coming into this year, I was focused on the Spitfires and making them better," said Greentree. "My goals didn't change, and I just kept on going with this team. Not going to the World Juniors wasn't heartbreaking or anything like that, but the best thing I can do is use it as a motivator and I think that's what I did."
The Spitfires are a relatively inexperienced team when it comes to playoff hockey after not making the postseason last year.
Should Windsor advance deep into the tournament, they could be going up against squads like the defending OHL champion London Knights, defending Memorial Cup champion Saginaw Spirit, and playoff-tested teams like the Kitchener Rangers and Erie Otters.
Greentree believes that lack of experience means the team has to be more focused and overly prepared to make sure they find success.
"We have a pretty young team where a lot of us haven't had a lot of playoff experience," said Greentree. "We're trying to be as dialled in as we can before games and doing the right things on the ice. When the playoffs come, it's harder to hang onto leads, so being dialled in defensively is going to be huge and the offence will come."
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