Quote:
Originally Posted by oldschoolcalgary
I love Schlemko and hope we sign him, but anyone that thinks he's a 'legit #5' dman is really reaching.
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Based on what?
What suggests to you he's NOT a legit #5dman? ...Considering every time he got bumped up to the #4 spot beside Brodie the team got better, every minute he played on the #5 spot beside Diaz the team got better, he played legitimate minutes in the playoffs while Hartley cycled Wotherspoon and Potter nervously in the #6 spot until Diaz' return, and Brad Treliving our general manager insisted in every interview that Schlemko was capable of playing more minutes and taking the load off the other guys.
Schlemko's a steady defenseman. He doesn't produce much offensively so he should be cheap. Yet unlike all other "#5s" last season, he can actually drive possession unlike Smid/Engelland and doesn't make a turnover in the corners every time unlike Diaz. That's exactly what you want for a #5. Sure, it'd be nice to have a guy like Wideman as your #5 but dollar for dollar value is an important consideration.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mrdonkey
Lost in all this Schlemko talk is the assumption that Smid will not play ever again. At the moment we don't know that for sure.
Food for thought.
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I think it's more the assumption that Smid will probably be on the IR list during training camp and the early parts of the season, which will also help balance out the Dcore so that we don't have to put anyone on waivers early on. Even if Smid returns, it'll probably be during the season.
Whatever happens though, I hope the pairings are either Smid-Wideman or Engelland-Schlemko or Schlemko-Smid or Schlemko-Wideman. If our bottom pairing is ever Smid-Engelland ever again, it's gonna be rough.