Quote:
Originally Posted by Textcritic
That is not the only hope. There is no reason to think that Smith cannot continue to deliver wins at the same pace he has this season even with his current level of play. It seems likely that he will still come up with some clutch performances here and there, because this is what he has done to this point of the year. It’s not like he can’t win games; even with all the mistakes, his overall poor play and bad goals he continues to pick up wins. I don’t see why this would suddenly now change, and I think the coaches will continue to use him like they have for the past six or seven weeks.
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If all games were equal, perhaps. However there is a narrative out there about games in the second half of the year becoming more competitive and tighter.
If that narrative is something you can rely on, then the probability of the offense simply scoring at will to overcome poor goaltending will be lower.
I think something that has to be regarded as a truth is that it is much easier to allow a goal than it is to score one.
As for why it would suddenly change, one thing has already suddenly changed. Last year, when he returned from his injury, and when other teams were playing demonstrably better than the Flames. The post last season’s injury Mike Smith is the new normal Mike Smith.
With Resolute’s stats showing that he has struggled in 4 of every 7 starts. That’s exactly the proportion of playoff games that is required (at minimum) to decide a playoff series.
Here is a thought. Smith is 36 and not earning another big league payday. As you and others have acknowledged, not many people would want to trade for him. But what if his remaining term is of use in a trade? Hear me out. If you had a bad contract you could take back which had some term, and think there is some opportunity to de risk it by considering that asset salvageable, how about that. Like a guy who usually can be counted on for 20 goals, but who has only put up, say, 3 so far this year and can maybe benefit from a change of scene? I wonder if Tre could find that somewhere.
Oh. Crap. Never mind.