The Red Wings Should Have Reilly Smith on Their Radar
The Detroit Red Wings will undoubtedly look to make a move or two. Heck, with a change in coach, they could look to bring in quite a few players which would really allow this team to take a step up… or fall. All the same, the Red Wings off-season will be busy which means it’s critical they make smart choices.
Reilly Smith
Reilly Smith is one of the better defensive forwards in the NHL. Having been a defensive forward for most of his career the production hasn’t quite been there. But, that’s not really a big concern for me.
The Red Wings currently have a ton of young, rising stars in their affiliate. So, saying they don’t have scoring is more of a statement made for now because those young superstars aren’t that far away.
So, I’m sure you’re wondering why I chose Reilly Smith, well, here you go:
Reilly Smith has the veteran presence that would allow the younger guys to have a crutch. By that I mean, when they first come into the league they aren’t really held to any standard other than what they showed in the juniors and their previous seasons. And if they are playing in the NHL, they probably have a history of putting up terrific numbers and phenomonal seasons.But the NHL is way harder than that.
Holding someone to a standard of greatness or potential greatness is hard. So, having a crutch- someone you can learn from and can help you stay at a certain level- would be helpful. Because when Reilly Smith is on your line, he can make it a very good line regardless of who’s on it.
If you were to pair Reilly Smith with Joe Veleno and maybe Filip Zadina, the line would have everything you need. The defense, the offense, the puck handling, the speed, it would have it all. Which, is something I think is important.