BRANDON — As much as Conor Geekie enjoys scoring goals, he gets a special satisfaction from frustrating opponents with his defensive play.

“I think it’s the third child syndrome,” Geekie said with a smile on Sunday. “I don’t know.”

As the youngest of three brothers, Conor had to compete against his older siblings for everything during his childhood in a small town in Manitoba, and it was no different on the ice.

“I’ve played against Morgan and Noah my whole life and just tried not to lose, and I think that’s translated into the game,” Geekie said. “I love scoring more than anything, and that’s always going to be the case, and I love making plays. But at the same time, I love shutting down opponents.”

As the Lightning’s top talent acquired from Utah in the Mikhail Sergachev trade, the 20-year-old geek’s future looks bright. Tampa Bay hasn’t had a talent of his caliber in years, and Arizona’s 11th pick in the 2022 draft could be on the NHL roster sooner or later.

“We’re really excited about his potential to play a lot of minutes at the NHL level,” Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said. “… And everything we’ve learned from him since we signed him in late June – from development camp to his (rookie) showcase – has reinforced our belief that we have a blue-chip prospect in Conor Geekie.”

“How long it takes him to do that, I don’t know. And I wouldn’t bet on it, but we’re really happy with the composition. We’re really happy with the skill set, the size, the strength, the ability to carry the puck, protect the puck, shoot the puck, make plays, the meanness, picking up pucks, stealing pucks.”

When preseason games begin this week, Geekie will have a chance to show the Lightning brass just how close he is to the NHL. He could open the season at AHL Syracuse, but he’ll get enough playing time in preseason games to prove otherwise.

“You want to make the team, but I think the main goal is to make the decision as difficult as possible,” Geekie said. “I don’t want to be the face of anything. I’m just trying to make the decision as difficult as possible. And wherever I end up, I’m going to do my best.”

On Sunday, Geekie participated in his first training camp with the Lightning’s main group, which culminated in a scrimmage game where Geekie played a line against the team’s top trio of Jake Guentzel, Brayden Point and Nikita Kucherov at center.

“I think it’s every kid’s dream to play at that level,” Geekie said. “So when you look over and see guys like that, it’s pretty cool. … Sometimes I’m a little bit of a fanboy out there. But you try to do as much as you can.”

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Geekie has benefited from his oldest brother Morgan forging his own path in the NHL. Drafted in the third round by Carolina in 2017, Morgan didn’t find a starting position until he was traded to Seattle in the expansion draft ahead of the 2021-22 season. He broke out last season, scoring 17 goals for Boston. Geekie’s middle brother Noah also played hockey growing up before starting a baseball career at Emporia State in Kansas.

“He had to work for everything he got,” Geekie said of Morgan. “I appreciate the opportunities I get, no matter what it is, and I think I definitely rely on him. Maybe I don’t talk to him about it, but seeing how hard he’s worked to get there, he’s come a long way, and I think that definitely helps me. … And my other brother, Noah, works harder than either of us, no matter what he does.”

Geekie spent six weeks training with Morgan in Calgary this summer, reigniting their old competitive spirit. Geekie also competed against other NHL players such as Flames defenseman Jake Bean, Hurricanes forward Tyson Jost and Blues center Dylan Holloway, but competing with his older brother was more important to him.

“One day, Morgan and I were kind of on the same training plan,” Geekie said. “We were doing some sprints and stuff, and I had already done mine and he had done his, and he beat me. And I think we were just sprinting up and down the gym for 30 to 35 minutes trying to beat each other. And unfortunately, I lost, but he’s older, so we’ll give him credit for that.”

Geekie also used the summer to improve his test scores from July’s development camp, which gave him an inside look at how Lightning rookies train. Geekie said he never did much front squatting and admitted he was never particularly good at the bench press.

His hard work was visible.

“He played in the World Junior Championship for a couple of years toward the end of the year,” said Stacy Roest, Lightning director of player development. “So he’s had a really busy couple of years with a lot of games. Development camp was the first time we got to really get to know him. And then he saw our standards and guidelines of what we expect and he went home and did the work. We give them all the resources, but like we say, they have to do the work. And he did it, and it’s going to pay off.”

Make it difficult for everyone

Geekie said he wanted to model his game after Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, the 2023-24 Selke Trophy winner as the NHL’s best defensive forward. Geekie joked that his younger self would laugh about it – he remembered arguing with rookie coaches about it – but as he got older, he understood that the best way to get and keep a job in the NHL was to be a strong two-way player.

In his final year in the Major Juniors league, Geekie set career highs last season with 43 goals and 99 points while playing for the Wenatchee Wild and Swift Current Broncos. His plus-51 goal differential was the second-best in the Western Hockey League.

“I was more successful offensively than I’ve ever been and played my best defense,” Geekie said. “It’s one of those things you grow into over time. And like I said, it’s fun. It’s fun to make other teams mad. And when you can play on both sides of the puck, it just makes the game a lot more fun.”

After finishing 22nd in goals allowed last season, the Lightning team is now focused on improving its defensive performance, and Geekie knows the best way to earn a spot on the roster is to show he can play a responsible game in both directions.

“I think having that game to fall back on and being able to play the two-way center game helps me a lot in terms of opportunities,” he said. “And I think for me personally, it’s just great to be a pain in the ass. I like being the guy that nobody likes to play against and get on their nerves a little bit.”

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