Liam Greentree isn’t sweating his Rangers expectations as pro career begins

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Liam Greentree was able to cross one milestone off his list Monday as Rangers prospect development camp began at the team’s suburban Westchester facility. 

Months after being part of the trade that sent Artemi Panarin to Los Angeles, Greentree was finally able to pull the Ranger crest over his head for the first time.

The hulking right winger was still in the OHL when he was dealt in the Panarin deal, and this week’s camp marks the first time Rangers brass gets to see in person the key piece the Blueshirts got back from that February trade. 

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“It’s been awesome. New York is such a historic franchise,” Greentree said after his first day on the ice at the MSG Training Center. “It’s an Original Six franchise, and it’s just really cool to be a part of it. This is the first time I’ve worn the jersey, so it’s a pretty cool experience.”

There are already growing expectations for Greentree among the Blueshirt faithful as development camp opened this week, after the 20-year-old had 74 points (38 goals, 36 assists) in 52 games for the OHL’s Windsor Spitfires last season.

He’s had three consecutive seasons of at least 74 points in the OHL. 

And in February following the Panarin trade, Rangers president and general manager Chris Drury told reporters that he valued Greentree “higher than a ’26 or ’27 first-round pick.”

Couple all of that with the fact that the winger will be turning pro this upcoming season, it could make any young hockey player feel overwhelmed, but the expectations don’t seem to have bothered Greentree one bit. 

“It’s the business of it, and I’ve yet to play an NHL game,” he said in response to a question about feeling any extra pressure. “I’m going through the process of it and trying to make my career a good one. There’s a whole process to these things, so I’m trusting everyone around me.

“I want to play my game and be a Ranger one day.”

Greentree described his game as that of a “big power forward” who can do a little bit of everything, and at 6-foot-2, 207 pounds, it’s easy to see why he would view himself in that way.

Greentree, who was taken by the Kings 26th overall in 2024, is expected to start his professional career in the AHL with the Hartford Wolf Pack, but it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility for him to see playing time with the big club at some point.

In preparation for the jump to the pros, Greentree has been working on his skating, pointing to the “different speed” of the NHL as the biggest factor in the jump from junior hockey. 

One person who knows what the Rangers potentially have in Greentree is fellow prospect Nathan Aspinall, who has known Greentree since they were 6.

The two have been skating together in the summer. 

“I think just his playmaking, goal scoring,” Aspinall said about Greentree’s most exciting attributes. “I think just when he gets the puck on his stick, he’s dangerous everywhere, so that’s something. He’s an amazing player.”

Greentree isn’t the only prospect with eyes on him during the Rangers camp this week. 

First-round pick Alberts Smits took the ice for his first time after a whirlwind weekend in Buffalo after he was taken by the Blueshirts fifth overall on Friday night. 

Smits didn’t go into too much on his first day as he looks to make his own mark with the Rangers.

He kept it close to the vest when he was asked if he would be at training camp in September — “We’ll see how it goes” — and he said he was “focused on getting to know the organization” when asked about conversations with the team about his development and path forward. 

Greentree expanded a bit more about what he hopes to take out of development camp. 

“I’m here to get better and to learn a lot,” he said. “Try to see what it takes to make it to the next level. It’s about taking everything in here and taking it to the offseason and really having a good offseason.”