The tinted visor. The gap-tooth smiled. It’s back. On Tuesday, prior to their game against the Minnesota Wild, the Tampa Bay Lightning announced that they had recalled forward Conor Geekie from the Syracuse Crunch. With injuries to Gage Goncalves, Dominic James, and Nick Paul, there was a need for some help in the middle of the ice, and the Lightning are turning to one of their top prospects to fill it.
The 21-year-old started the season with the Lightning, but after posting just one assist in his first six games, he was reassigned to the Crunch. Given ice time and a mandate to play every aspect of the game, Geekie flourished. He has 51 points (14 goals, 37 assists) in 47 games and was named to the AHL All-Star roster. More importantly, he seemingly regained the swagger that impressed scouts during his dominant run in the WHL as a junior.
Even if he isn’t picking up a point, Geekie is the most notable player on the ice for the Crunch. He’s used his size to bully his way to the front of the net. The number one prospect according to Raw Charge’s most recent Top 25 Under 25 countdown also has the ability to draw opponents to him and then dish off the puck to open teammates.
His skating has improved over the last year, and that will be the biggest test he’ll face during his recall. He’s on par, or slightly better than his AHL counterparts, if he can be at least average at the NHL level, his other skills can make him an important addition to the roster.
The fact that the Lightning recalled him at this point is probably not great news for at least one of the injured forwards. There have been opportunities throughout the season to call him up that Tampa Bay has resisted in lieu of letting him continue to rack up the minutes on the ice in Syracuse. With two forwards out, there is a chance Geekie will be getting regular shifts with the Lightning during his stay.
Can he seize the opportunity and force them to keep him up when the injured players return? Too often during his previous stints with the Lightning, the consistency has been lacking. He’s showed flashes of the skill that made him a first round pick, but then would disappear for long stretches. There would also be too much deferring to the players around him when he was on the ice. Geekie has an above-average NHL shot. For a bigger player, his hands are pretty silky. He needs to trust his skills and play with the confidence he does at the AHL level.
If he can do that, he could make a temporary stay into a permanent one (and sell some t-shirts!).
