Quite a few times, because I generally pay good attention to the Generals, but he didn't stand out as much besides how much bigger he was than every other player on the ice.
I think people are chalking up this last year to mean that he is somehow gonna be a middle six player simply because of how much better he looked then as opposed to the year before. Maybe he's a late bloomer, I don't know. But you can't just say that because he had a good year. Smith is more or less destined to play eight minutes a night and hit people as hard as he can, if he ever cracks the NHL. This was my problem with the Kanzig pick, too.
You didn't notice how he was matched up against other team's top lines often? You don't send out goons in those situations, and the other team ends up skating circles around him.
There is good reason to be optimistic of Smith. There is also good reason to be optimistic of Kanzig as well. Size and the ability to punch faces is not the only things these kids have in common. Big players are often late bloomers. They both have great Hockey IQ. They both line up against the opposing team's BEST players. Kanzig is probably the better skater at this point (you didn't see him at camp last year?), but Smith is also improving upon that.
I would bet they both become serviceable NHL players, not goons. Their IQ and determination (remember, Kanzig is apparently one of the most dedicated and intelligent prospects when it comes to training, and Smith sure sounds like he is the same) coupled with their physical size and agility make them very, very interesting prospects.
Will be nice to see how Kanzig's skating has improved (and it wasn't bad at all in camp!), and see how Smith moves around as well compared to the rest of the prospects.
