The Inspiring Journey of Jet Greaves to the NHL

At first, Greaves’ father wanted Jet to play another position. But then an opportunity came for him to finally get his chance to play goalie. That’s because there was no one around who wanted to do it.

“They were okay with me playing goalie,” Greaves said. “But my dad had always said he wanted me to play ‘player’ until I was 10 so I could just skate better and like learn the game better. And then I was just begging them like, let me play goalie, let me play goalie. And then it was like right before the first year of rep hockey, which was when we were seven maybe. One of my best friends at the time, still one of my best friends to this day, he was a goalie at the time. I was a defenseman and he decided he wanted to play defense for that first year. There weren’t any goalies, so my dad finally let me play goalie. I went to the tryouts and I was the only goalie there, so that was the start of it.”

Greaves eventually worked his way up the ranks close to home. He played for the Cambridge Hawks U15 and U16 teams. He spent time with the Guelph Hurricanes of the GOJHL. Then he got the honor of hearing his name at the 2017 OHL Priority Selection.

Greaves was taken in the third round of the OHL Draft by the Barrie Colts. He made his debut for the Colts in the 2018-19 season posting an impressive .911 save percentage in 27 games. Although his numbers dipped the following season, he was on the radar of NHL teams. He was ranked by NHL Central Scouting in advance of the 2019 NHL Draft.

Hawerchuk’s Influence

Greaves was coached in Barrie by the late, great Dale Hawerchuk. When the news of Hawerchuk’s passing came out, it devastated many in the hockey world.

Hawerchuk lost his battle with cancer in August 2020. Greaves couldn’t help but smile when thinking about his old coach. The impact Hawerchuk had on Greaves was a massive one. How much impact was there?

“So much,” Greaves said. “He was just an amazing person to be around. He taught me so much about being a pro and just how to approach the game, learning the game and just appreciating it, enjoying it, coming to work every day. He was just such a great person, so fun to be around and had so many jokes. I have so many fond memories of him. He was an amazing player. Even still when he was coaching us, obviously long after he retired, he would play three on three and stuff like that. He was always the best player of the ice, so he was still so good. I was just super grateful to get to know him. We miss him a lot. He was just an awesome person.”

Overcoming Covid & the Erie Prospect’s Tournament

Greaves went without hearing his name called at that draft or any draft for that matter. In 2019-20, he posted a goals-against of almost four and a save percentage of .888. It was fair to wonder if he’d get his chance to make it to the NHL.

Then the world stopped thanks to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Like many others in his age range, Greaves lost an entire year of playing time with leagues shut down.

In true Greaves fashion, Jet made the most of that downtime. Not only did he get to spend more time with his family, his father built the brothers a rink in their back yard.

“I remember I was just out there on our backyard ice. My dad built a backyard rink. We helped him out,” Greaves said. “My brother and I were just skating out there. We were skating there every day. That was so much fun just enjoying the game. I feel like that’s what it always comes back to. We were on the ponds with our buddies just enjoying the game so much. So it was fun to have that time.”

Then in the midst of finding a solution to not being able to play competitive hockey, one of Greaves’ friends stepped up with an idea. Thanks to the help of several OHL players, that idea became the Erie Prospect’s Tournament.

While Canada had more restrictions during the onset of Covid, the United States had some looser restrictions. This allowed Andrew Perrott and others to come up with the idea of the prospect’s tournament.

Over the course of a few days in the summer, OHL players came to Erie to play in a tournament. This was comprised of players looking for their next opportunity. Greaves played in that tournament. Others like Logan Mailloux also made the trip.

Perrott’s idea turned out to be a game changer for some. Scouts from 30 teams came to Erie for this event and got to watch several players in a competitive setting. The goal was to give these players extra exposure they may not have gotten otherwise.

For Greaves, this tournament ultimately helped him land his first pro contract. The Cleveland Monsters signed Greaves in July 2021 after not hearing his name at the draft. The Blue Jackets already knew who he was at that point.

Greaves was at Blue Jackets development camp before. And then at the Erie Tournament, Brad Thiessen was scouting and got a glimpse of Greaves again. They spoke in Erie. Shortly after the draft, the pro contract was signed.

Proper Development

Then in February 2022, Greaves signed an entry-level deal with the Blue Jackets. Although he appeared in just 10 NHL games between 2022-23 and 2023-24, he made a name for himself with the Monsters appearing in 89 regular season games and another 13 playoff games. He was one overtime away from helping the Monsters completed a comeback from 3-0 down against the eventual champion Hershey Bears.

This season, Greaves has done more of the same. He’s appeared in 40 games in the AHL and 10 more in the NHL going into Thursday’s regular-season finale against the New York Islanders.

Greaves is grateful for all the support he’s received in his time with the Monsters. He understands that he didn’t need to be rushed to the NHL. That extra time and preparation has him in position to succeed in the highest of stakes.

“It’s been so helpful. I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have so much valuable experience there in Cleveland,” Greaves said. “I’ve been able to play so many games over the last few years and have just a lot of different situations. Obviously those playoff games and just experiencing the ups and downs. I feel like I’ve learned a lot that’s helped me and prepared me for these situations now. And I’ve also been really fortunate to just have a lot of really good people around me there. Whether it was with Brad Thiessen who’s been our goalie coach there. He is taught me so much from his own experiences and Vogs (Trent Vogelhuber) and the whole coaching staff there. And then whether it was Manny Legace talking or with Nick (Backstrom) now, I feel like I’ve just been with a lot of people that have helped me to learn a lot and prepare me through this whole process.”

Greaves Brings the Calm

Ask anybody about the impact that Greaves has brought to the Blue Jackets. The first thing most anyone will say is just how calm he is in the net. No matter how big or small the moment is, he brings a level of calmness and comfort to his teammates.

Being down 3-0 to Hershey didn’t faze him. His play improved as the series went on. Being in the NHL playing four games in five days didn’t faze him either. He has a 0.75 goals-against average and two shutouts in elimination games for the Blue Jackets.

Where did he get this level of calm from? Greaves says it’s not just one thing.

“I think it’s a little bit of everything. It’s kind of just my natural disposition. I feel like this is just how I am day-to-day. I feel like that’s just kind of how I’m comfortable being. I think it’s also something that I’ve learned over time and just through different experiences. You learn how you want to handle yourself in them. I think another big thing that I always come back to with that type of stuff is my faith. I think just trusting in God’s plan for me and for us and his timing instead of it’s not about when I think things should happen or trying to do everything on my own, but just trusting in Him and leaning on Him I think helps me a lot as well.”

Ultimate Motivation

Greaves could easily be motivated by being passed over at NHL Drafts. It was always his desire to get to the NHL no matter what path he took. But for him, it’s all about joy.

“For me growing up, I wanted to play in the NHL and I wanted to win hockey games at the highest level. I don’t feel like that ever really changed. So I think not being drafted I guess is a part in the middle of that journey. But for me, it’s always just been about enjoying playing the game and just trying to be the best I can be wherever I am, in whatever situation that is and just give my best every day.”

Greaves’ journey to the NHL is inspiring on many levels. It proves anyone can take the road less travelled. It shows that just because a team doesn’t draft someone doesn’t mean they still can’t find their way to the NHL.

Greaves handled every situation being grateful for every opportunity while making sure joy was a part of it. The smile he wears daily is a sign of that joy he speaks of.

So who is Jet Greaves? He is the fun-loving, upbeat goalie for the Columbus Blue Jackets who has brought them to the cusp of the playoffs thanks to his super-calm demeanor.

Thanks to Greaves’ long journey to the NHL, nothing fazes him whatsoever.