Quote:
Originally Posted by strombad
Teams don't pay 3.5 million for mediocre third pairing defencemen that are easily replaceable. It literally does not happen in any scenario.
He cannot be both worth his contract, and a mediocre third pairing defenceman who is easily replaceable, one of the two is wrong, and popular opinion would be the latter.
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Game set and match. It seems hawkfan's end goal here is to convince everyone Smid is a 3rd pairing guy. He isn't.
He's a No. 4 guy. He has always played top-4 minutes although not on the PP, he moves the puck adequately but that isn't his game. He's a strict stay-at-home defensive guy who plays physical, kills penalties, can take shifts against top offensive players and generally helps provide a modicum of stability for whatever 5-man unit is on the ice at that time. He isn't an elite shut down guy but a good one and isn't going to get into trouble with mistakes.
Not offensive enough to be a No. 3/PP guy, not elite enough defensively to be a top-pairing shutdown guy, but he's also not a 3rd pairing guy whose goal is to soak up 12-15 minutes and hope to not be a weak link. That describes guys like O'Brien and Butler and to group Smid in with them is silly.
He is making exactly what No. 4 guys make - $3.5 million/year and that makes him neither a bargain nor overpaid. He's come as advertised and the Flames defense has been much improved in December which has helped the goalies gain a bit of confidence too.
He could probably be flipped for a pair of 2nds at the deadline or similar return should Burke so choose, or be kept and continue to provide stability to a blueline as the rebuild progresses. Either way that's a win for the Calgary Flames.