Reid now ready to return
by Peter Ruicci (Independent Media) | Photo by Bob Davies
Sure, he’s only one player.
But the return of star defenceman Chase Reid, expected to play on Wednesday (7:05 p.m.) in Saginaw after a 17-game absence, sends reverberations up and down the Soo Greyhounds lineup.
“He goes against the other team’s top line, he plays with our top line and our other defencemen get better matchups,” said head coach John Dean, who rattled off all of the ways Reid, who suffered an upper-body injury in Brantford on Feb. 1, benefits his team. “The puck is on his stick more often than not and when he’s on the ice, we’re on the offensive side of things instead of defending. He sets the table for everybody.”
While often awed by Reid’s skating and offensive talent, Dean also described the player as “one of the best defenders in the league. He’s got a great stick and he’s well-positioned.”
Summing it all up, the coach called the 18-year-old (2007 birth year) native of Chesterfield, Mich., a “very special player.”
For the season, Reid owns an 18-29-47 stat line, along with a plus-minus of plus-30 in 42 games.
In his absence, the Hounds have gone 9-6-0-2.
The second-year player could not be reached for comment on Tuesday, but in a recent interview, spoke of how he was “very anxious to start playing. It’s very hard sitting out, but you have to do what you have to do.”
The goal was to feel 100-per-cent ready before returning to the lineup.
But initially, how much will one of the top-rated skaters going into the 2026 NHL Entry Draft play?
Dean says the Greyhounds will play it by ear.
“We’re in no rush to overplay him, that’s for sure,” the coach added. “We’re going to put him into a spot to succeed, get his legs going, get him his touches and feeling good.”
While the Greyhounds 38-21-1-5 have surely missed Reid, there has been a silver lining to the player’s absence.
With more ice time against tougher opponents, some of the Greyhounds defencemen have had the opportunity to lift their games.
“They’re now capable of playing more critical minutes,” Dean said.
And then there’s this: Reid, a player used to playing very heavy minutes – often roughly half the game – when he was healthy, should now enter the postseason rested and fresh.
Asked about that, Dean spoke of how the Greyhounds are “getting back a player who is obviously not as taxed.”
The coach discussed how the six-foot-two, 190-pounder has “played in prospects games, the world juniors and a very-demanding schedule with us. Now he’s had a little bit of a rest.”
The club is also expected to welcome back forwards Marco Mignosa, the Hounds leading scorer, and Colin Fitzgerald on Wednesday. Both had been sidelined with upper-body injuries. Rearguard Brodie McConnell-Barker (illness) remains week to week.
With 82 points, good for fourth in the Western Conference, the Soo enters the final three games of the regular campaign with just a one-point lead over the fifth-place London Knights (38-22-4-1).
The teams are locked in as first-round playoff opponents, with only home ice to be determined.
With 35 combined regulation and overtime wins, London holds the first tie-breaker over the Soo.
The Greyhounds, who play host to Saginaw on Friday (7:07 p.m.) and Windsor on Sunday (2:07 p.m.), have 33.
The Knights are scheduled to visit Guelph on Wednesday, before coming home to play Windsor on Friday.
London caps the regular season on Saturday with a contest in Flint.
Meantime, having reviewed video of the Hounds 3-0 loss to Brantford on Sunday, a game the Soo dominated, Dean remained very pleased with his team’s performance.
The Hounds held a 40-21 edge in shots, but were stoned by Bulldogs goalie David Egorov.
Upon review of the contest, Dean thought his club could have been a little hungrier around the Brantford net.
“We could have taken the goalie’s eyes away better,” he added. “In the playoffs, against these elite teams, we have to be willing to get to the dirty areas to score.”
At Tuesday morning’s practice, Dean also discussed with his players the need to have more of a shooting mindset.
“But we were very happy with our weekend,” the coach added. “Consistency is the big thing. We want to bring that for these last three games so we’re trending in the right direction for the playoffs.”
