Hockeymom1960 5,107 Report post Posted September 26, 2013 I'm not ready to give up on him yet. But the kid looks terrible so far in his NHL career. If he doesn't show some significant improvement by season's end, I think it'll be time to either send him back down to GR for awhile, or part ways completely. That's never going to happen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Euro_Twins 4,469 Report post Posted September 26, 2013 there are several players that are either very good or at least effective at what they can do. unfortunately, they're surrounded by a lot of garbage. Several players, so you mean Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Abby, Franzen, Weiss, Alfie, Nyquist, Andy, Tatar, Miller, Eaves, Tootoo, bertuzzi(shootouts), Kronner, Ericsson, Kindl, Dekeyser and obviously howie. That sounds like most of our team, where is this "garbage"? what 4 players? (I didn't include helm cause he is injured) 1 Hockeymom1960 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Echolalia 2,961 Report post Posted September 26, 2013 Its important to remember that Smith is still very much inexperienced. Due to the lockout and the fact that we've been hearing so much from him in previous years, its easy to forget that as of right now, he only has 48 regular season games, and 14 playoff games of NHL experience under his belt. By the way, he has 15 regular season points, and 5 playoff points, which is a pretty respectable pace, IMO. He just needs to keep working on his play on the defensive side of the puck. 1 Hockeymom1960 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jesusberg 1,256 Report post Posted September 26, 2013 Honestly, he drives me insane, but so did a guy named Jakub Kindl for about three years. Defensemen blossom late - he just really needs to calm down. Most of us around here (myself included) were ready to ship Jake off without a second thought. Now the guy's considered the 2nd best offensive d-man on the team and looks great running that second PP unit.Seriously, how many defenders truly meet their expectations? Just from around the same period of time Smith was drafted... Hickey, Ellerby, Plante, Petrecki, Teubert, Cuma, Ellis, de Haan, Moore, etc, etc. Tons of defenders have no played up to their expectations, nor does it seem as if they will. Smith is in a good position to be insulated and play regular time on the third pairing. I know we'd all love to see young talent flourish on the team, but I think defenders are a whole different animal. Only time will tell whether or not Smith will meet his expected potential. 1 Detroit \# 1 Fan reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest fat guy in a maltby jersey Report post Posted September 26, 2013 Several players, so you mean Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Abby, Franzen, Weiss, Alfie, Nyquist, Andy, Tatar, Miller, Eaves, Tootoo, bertuzzi(shootouts), Kronner, Ericsson, Kindl, Dekeyser and obviously howie. That sounds like most of our team, where is this "garbage"? what 4 players? (I didn't include helm cause he is injured) LOL abdelkader? eaves? bertuzzi? tootoo?? cmon bro seriously cmon Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Red Wings Addict 787 Report post Posted September 27, 2013 Is Adderall illegal for NHL players? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Son of a Wing 1,644 Report post Posted September 27, 2013 LOL abdelkader? eaves? bertuzzi? tootoo?? cmon bro seriously cmon Not everything's measured by point totals "bro". In regards to Smith, he actually makes me feel sorry for Quincey at times. And I'm not a big fan of Quincey... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kylee 727 Report post Posted September 27, 2013 Smith's NHL career hasn't even been the length of one full season. He was getting middle pairing minutes in the playoffs last year, so Babcock must see something in him. Until he gets a full regular season under his belt, it's hard for me to have any idea what his ceiling is in terms of development. Pretty much agree with this. His sample size is still way, way too small to make any sort of judgement. That said, he has looked very shaky but he's also 24 years old. 1 Hockeymom1960 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PavelValerievichDatsyuk 1,935 Report post Posted September 27, 2013 Yes, Smith looks bad, but as others said, Kindl looked bad for quite a while. Howard also looked really bad the first bunch of games he played. Not a defenceman, but I think the point still stands that the NHL takes a while to get used to players not named Dekeyser. 1 Hockeymom1960 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Echolalia 2,961 Report post Posted September 27, 2013 NHL irony at it's finest... Smith - 1st round draft pick that was 'top dog' pretty much at every level he played now is struggling at the NHL level of play... DeKeyser - some no name kid who had to bust his balls in order to get to the next level, and most considered him a long shot to become a pro - now plays with poise as though he had been in the NHL for several seasons... I wouldn't be surprised if DeKeyser went through a similar slump that Smith, Kindl, Ericsson, etc went through. In the 10-15 NHL games he's played in, DeKeyer has looked solid, so perhaps he may bypass that phase. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest ForzaVerde Report post Posted September 27, 2013 Can everybody wait until we get to see Smith against a team that isnt top 5? You all realize that Chicago, Boston, Pittsburgh, Toronto, and Anaheim are the best 5 teams in the league, right? Our last 20 games have been BRUTAL. Probably the most difficult strength of schedule for a 20 game stretch EVER. I expect our yound defensemen to struggle against the Crosbys, Malkins, Perrys, Getzlafs, Krssels, Kadris, Kanes, Toews, Bergerons, and Lucic's of the league. Every team struggles against them. Give Smith a chance. He's really good and plays with grit. 1 Hockeymom1960 reacted to this Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
rick zombo 3,739 Report post Posted September 27, 2013 Can everybody wait until we get to see Smith against a team that isnt top 5? You all realize that Chicago, Boston, Pittsburgh, Toronto, and Anaheim are the best 5 teams in the league, right? Our last 20 games have been BRUTAL. Probably the most difficult strength of schedule for a 20 game stretch EVER. I expect our yound defensemen to struggle against the Crosbys, Malkins, Perrys, Getzlafs, Krssels, Kadris, Kanes, Toews, Bergerons, and Lucic's of the league. Every team struggles against them. Give Smith a chance. He's really good and plays with grit. Pretty sure Smith will have to play well against top 5 teams for the Wings to be successful. And....wait.....what? Toronto? Top 5 team? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Guest ForzaVerde Report post Posted September 27, 2013 Pretty sure Smith will have to play well against top 5 teams for the Wings to be successful. And....wait.....what? Toronto? Top 5 team? To win the stanley cup? Yes. To improve every year? No. We're gonna get to play the whole league this year. Not just the Stanley cup finalists and the teams that lost to them in the playoffs. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites