LSCII
Cup driven
Can we call his award the three and a half player award since he's taken the last half of the season off? 
Reilly Smith
- Thread starter Mainehockey33
- Start date
Colt.45Orr
Registered User
Should have gone to Soderberg --playing with Marchand and Bergeron is an easier gig than what the big Swede got saddled with.
Artemis
Took the red pill
Can we call his award the three and a half player award since he's taken the last half of the season off?
Pretty amazing that Bergeron can go on such a tear without one linemate.
RussellmaniaKW
Registered User
- Sep 15, 2004
- 19,699
- 21,808
The thing is, Soderberg was one of the best skaters not playing in the NHL before he came over. He's been a pro for years now and is in his physical prime. I think he has exceeded expectations somewhat but for the most part I think we all expected him to be a solid player, whereas most people probably didn't even think Smith would be a regular on this team. Smith has far exceeded expectations more so than Soderberg and that's the whole point of the award.
BigGoalBrad
Registered User
- Jun 3, 2012
- 9,955
- 2,751
You're giving the people that vote on this thing waaayyyyy too much credit
I agree with him even though the last month should have disqualified Smith.
I'm sure at the end of February the kid was like "sweet, I got that Jeep all sewn up, I'm gonna slack off a bit now!" ... but seriously, nobody expected the kid to make it out of the P, he may not be everyone's choice but he had a great start.
Hopefully he can find "it" again, soon.
Hopefully he can find "it" again, soon.
ODAAT
Registered User
Smitty is still working hard, but this appears to be a very familiar case of a young kid hitting a bit of a wall, let`s be honest here, if you told me some kid named Reilly Smith would contribute 19 goals at the beginning of the year I`d say "sign me up" and "sign you up" for the loony bin
My choice for the 7th would have been one that will no doubt irk many here (like I`m not used to that) and it`s Bart.
Gets hammered here a ton, but for what I expected and what he`s delivered.....love the kid`s game this year. Makes his mistakes, but comes back with amnesia and does his job very well and he`s more than exceeded my expectations of what I thought he could and couldn`t handle
My choice for the 7th would have been one that will no doubt irk many here (like I`m not used to that) and it`s Bart.
Gets hammered here a ton, but for what I expected and what he`s delivered.....love the kid`s game this year. Makes his mistakes, but comes back with amnesia and does his job very well and he`s more than exceeded my expectations of what I thought he could and couldn`t handle
I love Smith but he looks lost. I hope a switch is flipped in the post season. Hope they don't Seguin him
Miller should have gotten the 7th, AINEC. He has been consistently far above my expectations since the day he put on the spoked B. Also, playing D is twice as hard as playing Wing.
Miller should have gotten the 7th, AINEC. He has been consistently far above my expectations since the day he put on the spoked B. Also, playing D is twice as hard as playing Wing.
Sea Bass Neely
Registered User
Smitty is still working hard, but this appears to be a very familiar case of a young kid hitting a bit of a wall, let`s be honest here, if you told me some kid named Reilly Smith would contribute 19 goals at the beginning of the year I`d say "sign me up" and "sign you up" for the loony bin
My choice for the 7th would have been one that will no doubt irk many here (like I`m not used to that) and it`s Bart.
Gets hammered here a ton, but for what I expected and what he`s delivered.....love the kid`s game this year. Makes his mistakes, but comes back with amnesia and does his job very well and he`s more than exceeded my expectations of what I thought he could and couldn`t handle
I would've picked Soderberg, but i'm on record being a big Bart fan... he has played much of the season paired with Boychuk, Clode feeding him over 20min/game in many instances, and Bart more than held his own.
Hell, doesn't it say something in itself when you spend over half the season as the #4 D-man, playing big-boy minutes as a rookie on the best defensive team in the league. I mean, some people are just spoiled.
On the whole, Bart has had a very impressive rookie year. And we've already seen he can handle playoff action... i put him slightly ahead of Mez tbh. Mez just seems too inconsistent and is shakier in his own end than Bart is.
People underrate what a luxury having a young D-man with some serious wheels to skate the puck out of the D-zone with ease. He's a rookie and he'll make mistakes, but his skill-set is a nice one to have. And he's not undersized, he's 6'1" and around 200 lbs... kid has shown he can make some hard hits out there, too.
Anyhow, back to Smith... it's a shame he got the award in the midst of a prolonged slump (worst of the season by far) but he's still playing somewhat more effectively than the statistics alone would indicate. At the very least, he is not holding his linemates back as Bergeron is having the most electrifying scoring streak of his career.
Soderberg made a strong, strong case for deserving the award but the way Smith came out of the gate opening eyes (whereas Yeti didn't open eyes until near mid-season) -- considering he was viewed as little more than a throw-in for the Seguin trade -- when people had zero expectations of him. Most people didn't even think he'd make the team... so despite the slump he has earned with his steady play for most of the season.
I love the kid's attitude. He was very humble in accepting the award... as Jack mentioned there was almost a sense of embarrassment on Reilly's part knowing that while he DID in fact "exceed all expectations" he probably feels undeserving of such accolades at the moment.
The bright side to Smith's slump is that his dip in performance is not costing the Bruins any points in the standings -- they've kept on with their winning ways -- and at the same time the slump is diminishing the concerns about Chia's ability to extend him. Extending Smith and making sure he remains a Bruins no longer seems as daunting of a task as it once did when he was the team's leading scorer.
Playoff performance will overshadow everything else, but Smitty's seasonal scoring totals (while still far exceeding the production we expected from him) when the season ends look a lot different that what we imagined they might be at the point in the season when Smith had propelled himself into the Bruins' leading scorer.
He had 18 goals when he led the team, iirc. The prospect of him not reaching 20 goals on the season did not even appear within the realm of possibilities, but it could happen. I hope he does reach 20... and Bergy reaches 30.
KrejciMVP
Registered User
Claude is clearly sticking with Smith because he hates the kids. Especially young, offensively skilled players. Oh wait…
Caper Bruins fan
Registered User
I would have given it to Soderberg also.I am a tad concerned about Smith's play as we head into the playoffs.Smith doesn't seem to be controlling the puck as effectively as he was earlier in the year.Bergeron/Marchand are going to need someone who is more than a good skater/forechecker in the post season.I had envisioned Smith being able to contribute more than Jagr or Recchi but now I am not so sure.
KnightofBoston
Registered User
If you assume people know about soderberg then yes it would make sense he's a less likely candidate for 7th
But, based on reality - the reality is most people voting on it had only seen soderberg at the end of last season and that has been night and day with this season. Not to mention knowledgeable posters on our own board who knew about soderberg didn't believe he'd come over and or would be able to acclimate to the nhl because he was "too old" (even though franzen come over at the same age from the same team no less and did well
)
So based on that soderberg probably should have won
However I think all things considered smith was a good choice, I actually probably would have picked miller but that was just me
But, based on reality - the reality is most people voting on it had only seen soderberg at the end of last season and that has been night and day with this season. Not to mention knowledgeable posters on our own board who knew about soderberg didn't believe he'd come over and or would be able to acclimate to the nhl because he was "too old" (even though franzen come over at the same age from the same team no less and did well
) So based on that soderberg probably should have won
However I think all things considered smith was a good choice, I actually probably would have picked miller but that was just me
Over the volcano
Registered User
SoldiersOfFilth
Hamildone with Neely
nice goal by him tonight. It was a deflection but sometimes that's all you need. I'm glad he hit 20
theswede2013
Registered User
- Feb 26, 2013
- 409
- 0
He has had some really good scoring chances and has not been able to burry them as of late. He has hit a bit of a wall. I hope now that he has gotten one they start to go in for him. regardless he is a good player in the mold of Bergy IMHO.
zaYG
Nerevarine
Good game last night. He was a big reason for that second goal. Digging out the puck against Koivu was pure Bruins hockey.
Big fan of Smith but the team is going to need him to "grow up" rather quickly. He's clearly lost confidence but part of being a professional is finding it (there's no pouting in pro hockey). He wasted 3 or 4 great opportunities last night that a confident player wouldn't have wasted. He's overthinking things right now and it's making the simple stuff harder.
I think he'd be served well by a night or two off but clearly Claude wants him to fight through it. As I often do, I think that's a less effective way of dealing with this. Reilly should be healthy scratched, stat, and should be on a fairly short leash in only this sense - play tentative and you will sit. Play aggressive and with a chip on your shoulder and you will keep playing top 6 minutes.
But a night watching from upstairs is beyond needed at this point. He needs a mental rest and recharge and needs to see the game from a different perspective for a bit. 2 games would probably be even better but it's too late for that now so hopefully one will suffice.
I think he'd be served well by a night or two off but clearly Claude wants him to fight through it. As I often do, I think that's a less effective way of dealing with this. Reilly should be healthy scratched, stat, and should be on a fairly short leash in only this sense - play tentative and you will sit. Play aggressive and with a chip on your shoulder and you will keep playing top 6 minutes.
But a night watching from upstairs is beyond needed at this point. He needs a mental rest and recharge and needs to see the game from a different perspective for a bit. 2 games would probably be even better but it's too late for that now so hopefully one will suffice.
