Trade Smith ASAP!

[RedStormRising 7]

Rookie or not, he really has been awful. He makes me cringe many times a game. Hoping he grows into a solid player...

[hillbillywingsfan 792]

I love that Babcock said he thought he played a great game. I agree that he is a rookie and still learning how to play in the playoffs and his confidence as a young player is very fragile. If you take him out now it could threaten the rest of his career. Show confidence in him and he will be confident in himself.

I agree with both sides on this one to a point. The hard thing to me is knowing all the talk about Smith being the next awesome D-man and all the time he spent in GR growing and the time on the wings then you see someone like Danny D come in with no GR experience right out of college look head and shoulders above Smith at times it is frustrating. But I do agree we have to keep Smith out there and let his game grow. The potential is there for sure you can see it. Now everyone stop for a sec and just think about how our team is going to look a season or 2 down the road........WOW. I'm so excited.

Edited May 19, 2013 by hillbillywingsfan

[hooon 1,089]

A rookie defensemen on a weak defense who makes mistakes? Gosh.

Yes he has looked bad plenty of times this season. He still has a tremendous amount of upside, limited amount of trade value, and has plenty of years to mature.

Trading him would be absolutely idiotic.

[55fan 5,133]

Notice that after his goal he seemed to exude a bit more confidence out there. He just looked like he had a bit of a monkey lifted off his shoulders today...A game like today where he was really down on himself and then felt the euphoria of netting the game winner can do wonders for his mental state and help mold him into the player everyone was touting him to be over last summer... You MUST lose to learn to win. You learn by mistakes and only get better. If people weren't meant to make mistakes, God would not have created erasers. You may go through your first couple of pencils quickly, but with every mistake erased and life's lessons learned, eventually the eraser last longer and longer and longer...until finally you have the experience and the confidence to use a pen!

This is the best thing I have read today. Over the years, I've plussed you and negged you (when we had that option), but this is the plussiest thing you have ever written. I regret that I can only like it once. I might just have to find some random posts of yours and like them.

If he had a full season, he might be a bit more poised. If we still had Lidstrom and Stuart, and had gotten DD, and if DD hadn't gotten hurt, Smith would be in the press box, if he was on the team at all. Cola wouldn't have been signed, and White looked good with Lids, so it would probably be 5-18, 55-23, 52-65 with Q and Kindl in the press box.

Those are huge "if"s. You play with the team you have. You really don't have other options. Is White better than Smith? I think so, but Babs doesn't. Babs sees them every day. I don't.

Yes, Smith is going to make some bad plays and bad decisions. E did the same when not paired with Nick, who often bailed him out. I was ready to write Kindl off as a bust, but he also just needed time and experience to develop. How many times do we get told that D need more time to develop?

The young D has been thrown into the fire this year, and they are being refined like silver. Some day they will shine. Some are there; some are not.

Criticism is warranted. Wanting to trade him when he's bad is understandable. Demanding that he be traded at this point is premature, short-sighted, and petulant.

[dirtydangles 1,328]

smith is just finding his feet. you can see his confidence grow with each game. he looked better towards the end of the ducks series when he scored his first goal of the season and has improved a bit each game since. he will be a great player for years to come once he settles in and learns when he should use his skill and when to just play it smart/simple.

Remember when we were all calling for Holland to buy low on Bogosian and then atlanta didn't trade him and it turned out he became a stud? The same could very well happen here.

[kickazz 5,459]

Although I agree with folks who are giving the "smith is still a rookie" excuse, it's funny that Babcock still goes with Smith over White even after Smith makes a billion mistakes during playoffs. Gotta love babs.

[matt198913 932]

Smith has been pretty darn ok... 2 goals he's just having a difficult time with small plays

[Hockeytown0001 7,652]

[Z Winged Dangler 2,082]

Short of him winning the Conn Smythe there is nothing he can do to redeem himself for the extraordinary amount of WTF moments he has had this post-season.

He is the weakest D-man on the team, he is a PK-making machine, doesn't use his size, doesn't make good passes, and when he tried to be offensive he gives the puck away.

Cut him loose and get what you can for him. He is a dime-a-dozen player.

If you think he doesnt use his size then look at what he does to guys when they try to forecheck him. He's always the last one standing.

[ogreslayer 1,069]

Now no one shoot me but one day he may be our captain.

The captain who will lead by example, give you the shirt off his back, his ID out of his wallet so you can go drinking while underage... Nah, I don't see that happening. The next captain of the Wings after Hank retires will be Cleary who will still be playing here in his 40s.

If the next captain is already on the roster (and I don't think he is personally) I would give DeKeyser a better chance at the C than Smith.

[ben_usmc 253]

LOL, I feel like I'm reading about Jiri Fisher..

[Hockeymom1960 5,107]

The captain who will lead by example, give you the shirt off his back, his ID out of his wallet so you can go drinking while underage... Nah, I don't see that happening. The next captain of the Wings after Hank retires will be Cleary who will still be playing here in his 40s.

If the next captain is already on the roster (and I don't think he is personally) I would give DeKeyser a better chance at the C than Smith.

He is young and has made mistakes. I just wouldn't count him out that's all.

[evilzyme 769]

Smith has made mistakes, just as any other rookie would. As many have already stated, he's getting thrown into the fire and having to take on responsibilities that normally would've never found their way to him. He's playing in the 2nd pairing, when he should be on the 3rd. He's playing against Anaheim and Chicago, and their two top lines. That's the #1 and #2 seeds in the Western conference gents. Those are top lines, especially Chicago with how deep they are. I'm sitting here pondering if any of you actually watched Smith through his junior(college)/AHL performances. He has never been that defensive guy, ever. His defense has always been brutal. The upside to him was his offensive capability. Unfortunately, he has nothing to show for that during the regular season. He needs to learn from mistakes when he can make his offensive moves. Not to mention, with this season being so hard on all the rookies, he hasn't had the luxury of pushing offensively. Babcock has had to stress defense first because of our teams capability.

This is on par with the Howard = Average thread, knee-jerk wise. Yes, he makes mistakes. No, we shouldn't trade him. If we're going to allow Kindl and Ericsson to get years for their development, you better give Smitty atleast more than 1 accelerated season(he's played a total of 57 NHL games, including last season, this season, and playoffs. (an NHL season is 82...)) . Absolute knee-jerk here.

Edited May 19, 2013 by evilzyme

[rooter2309 28]

I'm putting my faith in the fact that Holland and Babcock are much better judges of hockey potential than all of us here. People here, myself included, make quick inferences on a shift by shift, game by game basis. Thes guys are paid to see the big picture and that's what they're doing. Kid is going to be here a while. We will all have a laugh when he's a top level NHL defenseman for years to come.

[T.Low 1,011]

It's all about pace. For the first couple of years new players are getting used to the pace of the NHL game. Smith was a great Defenseman at the AHL pace. I think he will progress and get used to the NHL pace and become the top four d. Hopefully we can survive this playoff learning curve.x

[kickazz 5,459]

Brendan Smith captain? Lmao. No.

Look at our past captains people. Yzerman, Lidstrom, Zetterberg. Especially look at Zetterberg since most of us know him more closely since he's younger. All three by the way were world class players their ROOKIE SEASON!

Zetterberg rookie season: In 79 games he had 22 goals and 22 assists and ONLY 8 PENALTY MINUTES

Lidstrom rookie season : In 80 games, he had 60 points with 22 penalty minutes a +36 rating

Yzerman rookie season: 80 games, 87 points, 33 penalty minutes.

Brendan Smith 2013 rookie season: 34 games, 8 points, 36 PENALTY MINUTES +1 rating

Now I understand that Smith is more of a scrapper and had 2 fights in the season so you can take 10 minutes out of those 36 minutes. But those 26 minutes in 34 games compared to the previous captains is a joke. No way in hell would Red wings franchise current principle give it to Smith.

If we were truly to predict someone to get it next as of now; it would probably be Dekeyser. Kid does better on ice than most of the defensemen on our roster and he leads by example as a 22 year old or whatever he is. Plus babs and Holland love the kid as it is.. Smith on the other hand, the only kind of leading by example from him that I see is "How to draw a penalty in first 5 minutes of the game"

Don't get wrong, I understand Smith is still learning, but to predict him to be captain for a world class organization like Detroit is a joke. We aren't Anaheim Ducks or Florida Panthers people. We are the Detroit Red Wings.

Edited May 19, 2013 by kickazz

[wingsfan4795 552]

Brendan Smith captain? Lmao. No.

Look at our past captains people. Yzerman, Lidstrom, Zetterberg. Especially look at Zetterberg since most of us know him more closely since he's younger. All three by the way were world class players their ROOKIE SEASON!

Zetterberg rookie season: In 79 games he had 22 goals and 22 assists and ONLY 8 PENALTY MINUTES

Lidstrom rookie season : In 80 games, he had 60 points with 22 penalty minutes a +36 rating

Yzerman rookie season: 80 games, 87 points, 33 penalty minutes.

Brendan Smith 2013 rookie season: 34 games, 8 points, 36 PENALTY MINUTES +1 rating

Now I understand that Smith is more of a scrapper and had 2 fights in the season so you can take 10 minutes out of those 36 minutes. But those 26 minutes in 34 games compared to the previous captains is a joke. No way in hell would Red wings franchise current principle give it to Smith.

If we were truly to predict someone to get it next as of now; it would probably be Dekeyser. Kid does better on ice than most of the defensemen on our roster and he leads by example as a 22 year old or whatever he is. Plus babs and Holland love the kid as it is.. Smith on the other hand, the only kind of leading by example from him that I see is "How to draw a penalty in first 5 minutes of the game"

Don't get wrong, I understand Smith is still learning, but to predict him to be captain for a world class organization like Detroit is a joke. We aren't Anaheim Ducks or Florida Panthers people. We are the Detroit Red Wings.

So we're just not going to have a captain when Z retires? We have no young player on our roster who were "world class" when they were rookies

[Hockeymom1960 5,107]

Brendan Smith captain? Lmao. No.

Look at our past captains people. Yzerman, Lidstrom, Zetterberg. Especially look at Zetterberg since most of us know him more closely since he's younger. All three by the way were world class players their ROOKIE SEASON!

Zetterberg rookie season: In 79 games he had 22 goals and 22 assists and ONLY 8 PENALTY MINUTES

Lidstrom rookie season : In 80 games, he had 60 points with 22 penalty minutes a +36 rating

Yzerman rookie season: 80 games, 87 points, 33 penalty minutes.

Brendan Smith 2013 rookie season: 34 games, 8 points, 36 PENALTY MINUTES +1 rating

Now I understand that Smith is more of a scrapper and had 2 fights in the season so you can take 10 minutes out of those 36 minutes. But those 26 minutes in 34 games compared to the previous captains is a joke. No way in hell would Red wings franchise current principle give it to Smith.

If we were truly to predict someone to get it next as of now; it would probably be Dekeyser. Kid does better on ice than most of the defensemen on our roster and he leads by example as a 22 year old or whatever he is. Plus babs and Holland love the kid as it is.. Smith on the other hand, the only kind of leading by example from him that I see is "How to draw a penalty in first 5 minutes of the game"

Don't get wrong, I understand Smith is still learning, but to predict him to be captain for a world class organization like Detroit is a joke. We aren't Anaheim Ducks or Florida Panthers people. We are the Detroit Red Wings.

Ok, whatever you say

[Nevermind 363]

Smith isn't going to be captain. He's been arrested twice already (IIRC, a DUI for driving a moped drunk and a disorderly for punching a guy at a party). And then, there's the Teletubby carrying his license, claiming to be him. I'm not saying Smith can't mature, but guys like Yzerman, Lidstrom and Zetterberg would never have done things like that. And Smith still looks like he'd be sort of a prick off-the-ice.

On the other hand, I think DeKeyser seems to have the right makeup for possibly being captain one day. Just based on the way he plays the game, and the way he handles himself off-the-ice.

[matt198913 932]

People really have to just relax on this kid. He is playing a number 3 role in his first full season against the best team in the league. On top of that he has 2 goals an he plays physical. It will come give him time.

[kickazz 5,459]

So we're just not going to have a captain when Z retires? We have no young player on our roster who were "world class" when they were rookies

Why does it matter now? Zetterberg has 7 years on his contract. That's atleast 5-6 years of potential draft picks. Maybe we can get a player that can be the next Zetterberg. Maybe Kronner will stick around some more and get captaincy for 2-3 years after Z's gone. Kronwall ages well, I don't see why he wouldn't play till he's 42. Maybe after Kronwall it's Dekeyser. Maybe its not. Who knows. But clearly not Smith with his DUI's stupid behavior in public at times that tends to get him in trouble. I've been a wings fan for nearly 20+ years and never has the organization even considered giving captaincy to someone with a track record like Smith. Smiths got a lot of potential but his public behavior is very immature.

These are my personal opinions obviously but let's be honest how often do you see captains that have messed up this much on and off the ice? Heck id even give the captaincy to Darren Helm over Smith. He's been through hell and back with his injuries, he plays with class, the organization absolutely loves him. I mean Holland probably would never give up Helm unless Helm really wanted to leave.

Anyways , I understand we are diverging off topic but in conclusion although Smith is a messup, he's can also be a great player with a lot of potential. I would be upset if he was traded.

Edited May 19, 2013 by kickazz

[zetterberg_fan 0]

That's crazy to get rid of him. The guy to get rid of is Quincey. He seems to be out of place more than Smith, and he has been making penalties more than Smith has.

[Guest The Axe]

That's crazy to get rid of him. The guy to get rid of is Quincey. He seems to be out of place more than Smith, and he has been making penalties more than Smith has.

Quincey has been excellent. You are on weed!!!

[kipwinger 8,522]

I need to preface this by saying that I don't think he should be traded (unless it's for someone amazing), but you can't use "being a rookie" as an excuse for everything. He has played MUCH worse than Dekeyser and arguably worse than Lashoff as well. They're both rookies, and far less heralded than Smith was. Why is it that they manage to look solid despite being rookies while Smith can't seem to go two games without giving up the puck for a goal? Nobody is expecting him to be a super star, but given that he was our top rated and most highly touted prospect, I think we can expect a little more out of him than this...rookie or not.

[St. Michael (the Red Wing) 422]

Quincey has been excellent. You are on weed!!!

He might be high but don't give Quincey too much credit.

p.s Quincey has been solid.

Also coaching staff likes Smith.

I'm for it tbh

Edited May 20, 2013 by St. Michael (the Red Wing)