Player Discussion Brendan Smith

[Kipper933]

I too liked what I saw from Smith in the playoffs but Rangers are now 6-1 with Kampfer in the lineup, presumably with Smith as a scratch for most of those.

 

[DanielBrassard]

Signing a guy to the contract Smith got with the hope that he magically turns it on in the playoffs is foolish, and I hope Gorton didn't factor that in to signing him. It's a nice soundbite, but if a guy is only going to bring his best in the playoffs, which I haven't seen evidence Smith does, he's not worth signing.

 

[RangerLifer]

Wings fan who would just like to add some context on something that concerned me.

Brendan Smith has always struck me as a quintessential “all the tools, no toolbox player”. I am not surprised at all to see a slow start from him, he did it with Detroit annually, but I AM surprised at him supposedly not doing his best effort in terms of both fitness and self evaluation. Smith’s gifts bave always beem his physical tools, and while I haven’t watched him this year, I can only imagine how bad he looks without what was always his saving grace.

With that being said, there was some truth in the type of play you saw post trade deadline. Smith is the type of player who goes into the next gear come playoff time, always has. I am still incredibly relieved we didn’t re sign him, he’s worth 2.5 max imo, but I do hope he can rebound with you guys.

Smith’s game has always had warts, but when he does play well, he’s an x factor and plays like a legit top 4 guy with snarl. I think he’ll find his groove come April, as he always does. There are many things Smith lacks, but his compete level was never one of them. I’d chalk up him being pedestrian as a fitness thing that should be resolved shortly. The contract is still bad, but he is an NHL player

Please excuse typos btw, broken iphone screen lol

Yes, I have no doubt Smitty can play himself out of it as long as he gets a shot. He should be back in before too long.

 

[Raspewtin]

probably coming close to the point where you have to let him play back into form.

he started the season as absolute garbage and deserved his scratches, though.

 

[True Blue]

I feel that Wednesday's game is where the rubber meets the road on this. He has to play.

 

[Oscar Lindberg]

Whatever the reason for his garbage play, he appears to be on AVs shit list now

Interested to see how they handle it. No clue what he brings back in a trade if they go down that route

 

[Bob Richards]

 

[Crease]

He's SOL until their next loss.

 

[Inferno]

nobody hates AVs guts more than me..but i full stand behind him on this one...Smith deserves this..he's been awful.

I preach accountability...its warranted.

With that said, I think their are better options than Holden and Kampfer, but that's neither here nor there.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

I feel that Wednesday's game is where the rubber meets the road on this. He has to play.

Why does have have to play? At this moment he isn't better than Kampfer.

 

[True Blue]

nobody hates AVs guts more than me..but i full stand behind him on this one...Smith deserves this..he's been awful.

I preach accountability...its warranted.

With that said, I think their are better options than Holden and Kampfer, but that's neither here nor there.

I do not disagree that he should have been benched. But not to dress him for a 6th consecutive game? I think it is safe to say he got the message. Are we really saying that the team is better with Holden and Kampfer? That cannot be. I am all for accountability, but this is now getting a bit absurd.

 

[True Blue]

Why does have have to play? At this moment he isn't better than Kampfer.

You are basing a sample that is pretty small and is from the prior month. He may have been that bad then, but logic dictates that his play should be improved. The guy is a legit starter in the NHL. Kampfer is not.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

I do not disagree that he should have been benched. But not to dress him for a 6th consecutive game? I think it is safe to say he got the message. Are we really saying that the team is better with Holden and Kampfer? That cannot be. I am all for accountability, but this is now getting a bit absurd.

This team has won 6 straight, and while it's a team-effort it certainly doesn't point to a clear reason to give Smith his spot on the team back. He needs to prove himself in practice and from the reports and him being a healthy scratch we can assume he hasn't yet. Unless someone has followed practice and can honestly say Smith is better than Kampfer, we can't just assume Smith deserves to be back on the team

 

[Inferno]

the team is winning and playing relatively well. I really dont have a problem with this...message is sent..but you cant flip the switch either and put him back in if the other guys arent just brutally bad.

Kampfer and Holden havent been great, but even at their worst during this winning streak they've been better than Smith has been this season.

 

[OrbitalDynamics]

How is the guy expected to round into game shape if the smartest mind in hockey never lets him play? If they had let him walk as a FA people on this board would have been going sideways.

This is like McIlrath redux....scratched for eleventeen games, throw him in, watch him flounder,scratch for another eleventeen games.
Promptly throw under bus in media and voila,a Vigneault special.

All that is missing is throwing him out there as a LW FFS...or a comment about "How at this time _____ is a better defensive defenseman".

Waste of picks bringing him in,now wasted money sitting in pressbox so AV can mancrush on an AHL retread.

 

[OrbitalDynamics]

This team has won 6 straight, and while it's a team-effort it certainly doesn't point to a clear reason to give Smith his spot on the team back. He needs to prove himself in practice and from the reports and him being a healthy scratch we can assume he hasn't yet. Unless someone has followed practice and can honestly say Smith is better than Kampfer, we can't just assume Smith deserves to be back on the team

He's got $4.35 million reasons to be on the team.They didn't give him that contract so Alan Vigno could play musical defensemen for the first ten games of the season and exile him to the pressbox for Steve Friggin' Kampfer.

Should've let him go in free agency during the summer.This is asinine asset management.

 

[Chimpradamus]

nobody hates AVs guts more than me..but i full stand behind him on this one...Smith deserves this..he's been awful.

I preach accountability...its warranted.

With that said, I think their are better options than Holden and Kampfer, but that's neither here nor there.

Agreed. If it is true Smith approached the next training camp with a beer gut and hadn't take the off-season seriously - at all, then WTF? He should be scolded to no end. He is paid millions to be a professional hockey player and if he doesn't think that is to be taken seriously, he can sit and rot.

I'm very disappointed in Smith. It's not 1967, it's 2017. Smith didn't get the memo.

ANY player that doesn't understand their privilege of earning millions from playing hockey should just be thrown off the bus. If they can't take the regime, just retire already.

If it is true Smith entered training camp totally out of shape, NYR should just be able to cancel his contract and throw him out.

 

[LORDE]

How is the guy expected to round into game shape if the smartest mind in hockey never lets him play? If they had let him walk as a FA people on this board would have been going sideways.

This is like McIlrath redux....scratched for eleventeen games, throw him in, watch him flounder,scratch for another eleventeen games.
Promptly throw under bus in media and voila,a Vigneault special.

All that is missing is throwing him out there as a LW FFS...or a comment about "How at this time _____ is a better defensive defenseman".

Waste of picks bringing him in,now wasted money sitting in pressbox so AV can mancrush on an AHL retread.

This is a bit over-dramatic isn't it? Nothing even close to McIlrath

He's scratched because he came into the season completely unprepared and by many accounts completely OUT OF SHAPE

He will get another chance, probably as early as Friday. If he plays well I don't think he'll be benched for another "eleventeen" games. IF however he plays the way he did prior to this benching, he will and deservedly so.

There's no one to blame for Smith being outplayed by Holden and Kampfer other than SMITH.

 

[mike14]

He's scratched because he came into the season completely unprepared and by many accounts completely OUT OF SHAPE
.

Is there any actual confirmation that this is what occurred? It's not that I don't believe it (it explains a lot), it's just that it's hard to find any reporting on it anywhere; there's a lot of 'didn't so-and-so say?", but that's about it.

 

[LORDE]

Is there any actual confirmation that this is what occurred? It's not that I don't believe it (it explains a lot), it's just that it's hard to find any reporting on it anywhere; there's a lot of 'didn't so-and-so say?", but that's about it.

Yeah I dunno... that's why I said many accounts.

I have yet to see the NYR in person this year (live in FL and missed the Tampa game because of work) so I can't say.

Either way he lost his spot and will certainly have a chance to get it back... but has no one to blame but himself for sitting.

 

[Machinehead]

I too liked what I saw from Smith in the playoffs but Rangers are now 6-1 with Kampfer in the lineup, presumably with Smith as a scratch for most of those.

The Rangers are 6-1 in their last 7 with McDavid, Crosby, Karlsson, and Ovechkin not in the lineup.

 

[Levitate]

Is there any actual confirmation that this is what occurred? It's not that I don't believe it (it explains a lot), it's just that it's hard to find any reporting on it anywhere; there's a lot of 'didn't so-and-so say?", but that's about it.

Dave Maloney said something about it but I'm not even sure if he was reporting a fact or just commenting on the busy summer Smith had and that it may have lead to him struggling.

If he was totally and horribly out of shape I find it hard to believe he would have started the season in the lineup.

 

[LORDE]

Dave Maloney said something about it but I'm not even sure if he was reporting a fact or just commenting on the busy summer Smith had and that it may have lead to him struggling.

If he was totally and horribly out of shape I find it hard to believe he would have started the season in the lineup.

Isn't that worse? That means he has no excuse for playing as horrifically as he was.

At least partying a bit too much over the off season and being out of shape is a fixable issue.

If he just sucks now that he signed a hefty contract that's a MUCH bigger issue.

 

[mike14]

Isn't that worse? That means he has no excuse for playing as horrifically as he was.

At least partying a bit too much over the off season and being out of shape is a fixable issue.

If he just sucks now that he signed a hefty contract that's a MUCH bigger issue.

I'm not a fan of that contract, and wasn't at the time he signed it (should have been a Klein type amount), and there aren't many excuses for how horribly he or anyone else played in the first dozen games; but I can't see how he's going to consistently be worse than Holden/Kampfer, nor how he's going to get into 'game shape' (assuming that is the issue) when he doesn't get the chance to play any games.

Either you put him back in the lineup and suck it up for a few games until he's back in the flow, or you work like hell to move him because he's clearly not what you thought you were getting when you signed him to that contract

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

He's got $4.35 million reasons to be on the team.They didn't give him that contract so Alan Vigno could play musical defensemen for the first ten games of the season and exile him to the pressbox for Steve Friggin' Kampfer.

Should've let him go in free agency during the summer.This is asinine asset management.

That line of thinking makes no sense. I guess we need to send down Skjei, because his salary is so low.