Ladislav Smid

[Russian_fanatic]

Ohlund is not a very good comparison IMHO.

Smid doesn't play very physical (some might even call him 'softish') so unlike Ohlund he's not gonna paste opponents to the boards. He relies much more on his skating as well.

I'm thinking of something along the lines of less physical Lydman or something.

Oh stop hating please... you're saying that to make the Anaheim deal look better. I've seen Smid, in the AHL, and the WJC. Their comparision comes in because of their hockey smarts. Ohlund is one of the smartest players in the league(I'd say top 3). Smid is a very smart hockey player for his age, and will only get smarter.

Smid isn't as physical as Ohlund, but Smid does play a very good defensive game, and his physical attributes get underrated. Both aren't flashy, but both get the job done, and both can log huge minutes.

 

[Seph]

A poor man's Lidstrom?

Kenny Jonsson, maybe?

 

[Randall Graves*]

Funny Smid doesn't get this much Jocking with Anaheim but now that he's an Oiler, everyone comes out and says how good he'll be.

He's always had good upside, it apparantly just took a trade for people to pay attention.

 

[oilers9799]

i remember in the world jrs that he played in he really stood out

 

[Pepper]

Oh stop hating please... you're saying that to make the Anaheim deal look better. I've seen Smid, in the AHL, and the WJC. Their comparision comes in because of their hockey smarts. Ohlund is one of the smartest players in the league(I'd say top 3). Smid is a very smart hockey player for his age, and will only get smarter.

Smid isn't as physical as Ohlund, but Smid does play a very good defensive game, and his physical attributes get underrated. Both aren't flashy, but both get the job done, and both can log huge minutes.

Maybe you should read my comments about Smid before the trade happened, I have never valued him more/less.

In my books he was behind O'Brien in Portland last year and I wanted to see OB rather than Smid in Ducks this year.

But hey, don't let little facts that blow your ridiculous theory away ruin your perfecly good tirade.

Will he become a good NHL-dman? Most likely yes.

Will he become as good as Ohlund? Very unlikely.

He has 2nd d-man potential and most likely ends up as 3rd or 4th d-man.

 

[CraigC]

Well looks like you got a huge difference in opinion compared to most scout. Your entitled, but most likely very wrong.

 

[s7ark]

Sorry Pepper, but I am gonna take opinions from guys like Burke and Lowe over yours.

Me? I just hope they're right

 

[Transported Upstater]

I think he has post-traumatic kubina for 5 million-syndrome.

Yes, because THAT was relevant...

 

[Rise from the Ashes]

Maybe you should read my comments about Smid before the trade happened, I have never valued him more/less.

In my books he was behind O'Brien in Portland last year and I wanted to see OB rather than Smid in Ducks this year.

But hey, don't let little facts that blow your ridiculous theory away ruin your perfecly good tirade.

Will he become a good NHL-dman? Most likely yes.

Will he become as good as Ohlund? Very unlikely.

He has 2nd d-man potential and most likely ends up as 3rd or 4th d-man.

O'brien had a great year, i hope he continues his developement.

 

[Cerebral]

From what I have read/seen of Smid, his top upside is Jonsson or Ohlund while his lower upside is a guy like Lydman. I don't see him putting up a ton of points in the NHL but I think he could be a regular 30-35 point guy (similar to Ohlund and Jonsson) because he moves the puck so well.

We'll have to wait and see I suppose. I'm really curious to see how the Oilers use him this year, it sounds like he has a great shot at making the team and I'd like to see him play with a veteran like Jason Smith if that is the case.

 

[Pepper]

Sorry Pepper, but I am gonna take opinions from guys like Burke and Lowe over yours.

Me? I just hope they're right

Link to their opinions please.

 

[HabLover]

Smid should have been a Swede!

 

[rigger]

Pepper, I would have do disagree with you. Also I would like to note that O'Brien is three years older then Smid, 3 years isn't a lot usually but we are talking the difference between a 19 year old and a 22 year old. Physically and mentally the 22 year old should be leaps and bounds ahead of the 19 yo, especially for a defense man. O'Brien is a farther along in his development but Smid will pass him very soon and is much younger.

Smid will be a stud for years to come and a top pairing guy. I envision O'Brien to be a #4-5 guy for his career.

 

[Thundermare]

Smid

Really like the way he played at the WJC two years ago, he's a really steady and polished in his own end. Not overlay physical though Kenny Johnsson??? yeah that makes sense

 

[Pepper]

Actually it's 2½ years but I digress.

Yeah, they play different styles as OB is ultra-physical while Smid really isn't physical at all (and that's why the comparison to Ohlund is poor IMHO) and I like physical players so it's really only my preference. OB was projected to be a very tough stay-at-homer who won't put up much points but he surprised most with his offensive explosion last season, especially in play-offs.

Smid's consensus upside is no.2 d-man but it's still unclear whether he will ever reach that potential. Maybe he reaches it, maybe he will be the next Popovich. We'll see.

 

[rigger]

Actually it's 2½ years but I digress.

Yeah, they play different styles as OB is ultra-physical while Smid really isn't physical at all (and that's why the comparison to Ohlund is poor IMHO) and I like physical players so it's really only my preference. OB was projected to be a very tough stay-at-homer who won't put up much points but he surprised most with his offensive explosion last season, especially in play-offs.

Smid's consensus upside is no.2 d-man but it's still unclear whether he will ever reach that potential. Maybe he reaches it, maybe he will be the next Popovich. We'll see.

Sounds like a Matt Greene compared to Chorney, although Greene would not score 40+ points in the AHL. I am on the same page as I favor physical guys but I have heard and seen too much good in him to think he can't be a top 2 player in the near future, he is smart and right now that is what makes a defense man so good, the hitting has gone down a bit and you can't touch a guy anymore, that is why a smart guy is valuable, pair him up with a hard hitter like Smith and it seems like a good pairing.

 

[brianscot]

I saw Smid several times this past year in Portland. He just turned 20 this past winter, so he has time to fill out a still lean frame.

On the upside, the Ohlund comparisons fit in the sense that Smid could put up 10 goal, 30-40 assist numbers in the fabled new NHL.

Like other posters have stated, whether Smid consistently can be considered a number two is contingent upon his physical presence and play in his own zone. The man has good wheels and he is Ohlund-esque in potential.

Now lets see him take the big jump.

 

[Kevin Forbes]

Smid's consensus upside is no.2 d-man but it's still unclear whether he will ever reach that potential. Maybe he reaches it, maybe he will be the next Popovich. We'll see.

Off Topic, but talk to Atlanta fans about their views for Popovic.
He's far from a bust.

 

[Pepper]

Off Topic, but talk to Atlanta fans about their views for Popovic.
He's far from a bust.

Well, when he was with Ducks we ranked him as potential #2 d-man, just like Smid. Do you see Popovich getting there at some point? I have given up hope.

 

[Kevin Forbes]

Well, when he was with Ducks we ranked him as potential #2 d-man, just like Smid. Do you see Popovich getting there at some point? I have given up hope.

In the last top 20 prior to him being traded (http://hockeysfuture.com/article.php?sid=7476), I had him listed as a top four defenseman and had his rating at 7.0A (http://hockeysfuture.com/playerprojections.php).

Holly has changed that 7.0A to a 7.0B, but at the end of the day, I still think he can become a top four defenseman.

 

[rigger]

In the last top 20 prior to him being traded (http://hockeysfuture.com/article.php?sid=7476), I had him listed as a top four defenseman and had his rating at 7.0A (http://hockeysfuture.com/playerprojections.php).

Holly has changed that 7.0A to a 7.0B, but at the end of the day, I still think he can become a top four defenseman.

What do you figure Smid tops out at?

 

[theoil]

Well, when he was with Ducks we ranked him as potential #2 d-man, just like Smid. Do you see Popovich getting there at some point? I have given up hope.

When we had Lynch we had him rated a top 4 and I don't think St. Louis feels that way a year later. Young dmen are notoriously difficult to assess. On the Oiler board there are a lot of people that think Lowe is good at that but what he has been good at is identifying mature dmen who have been underperforming and somehow making them perform consistently near their top talent level. That is not a small feat but it is quite different from picking young guys and taking them up to a high level. Woywitka showed great promise when he was traded from Philly but plateaued too soon to reach his predicted potential. I know nothing about Smid and hope to be pleasantly surprised but about the only I don't expect is for him to match his guessed potential from when he was 19. He will be better or worse would be my guess.

 

[Kevin Forbes]

What do you figure Smid tops out at?

I think his ceiling is higher then Popovic, that's for sure. Defensively, he's similar in style to Lidstrom, not physical, but uses his stick a lot and blocks out players. Obviously, he's probably not as poised as Lidstrom. I think he has room to grow offensively. He wasn't Portland's top blueliner and could have seen more ice time. There's plenty of improvement on his totals from his first year in North America as a 19 year old.
Considering there's less than thirty defenseman who can truly be called "#1 Defensemen" in the league, I think Smid will be a very good #2. He's very polished already; there's not a lot of things he does poorly, so it is up to him (and the coaching staff) whether he makes that extra push to be something special.

 

[Pepper]

In the last top 20 prior to him being traded (http://hockeysfuture.com/article.php?sid=7476), I had him listed as a top four defenseman and had his rating at 7.0A (http://hockeysfuture.com/playerprojections.php).

Holly has changed that 7.0A to a 7.0B, but at the end of the day, I still think he can become a top four defenseman.

He better do something next season or there will be some serious questions about his future, I see the coming season as his cliche-like 'make or break' year.

For the record I feel Smid is clearly more promising than Popovich and is much younger as well. Who knows.

Btw, Woywitka is a good example of a young d-man who went from 'potential top4 NHL d-man' to huge ? in less than a year. So like someone said, assessing young d-man is difficult.