So I have been having some very animated conversations lately with a friend of mine about the defense. We are both in agreement that there are obvious deficiencies in the back end. And we both agree that they would do well to have a solid puck carrier back there. One thing we disagree on is the viability of Smid, another is the need for more offence from the last pairing and if Foster is truly worth keeping on the team if he is going to be simply a Power play specialist.
For Smid, I keep preaching the patience. I like the direction he has been going in. I like the fact that he has continued to get better (even if he is not what the Oilers brass claimed he was going to be) and although he really does seem to rely on his partner a lot, it’s not like some younger “D” that need their partner to cover mistakes. Smid seems to need a partner that is going to bring offence while he is a stay at home type. On a properly built defense this is not a problem at all, you pair him with a Visnovsky type player and away he goes. On THIS team it’s hard to watch as there isn’t a partner that compliments him so well. I also think that if he was allowed to properly develop in the minors instead of being rushed up so the fans wouldn’t cry about losing Pronger, it would have made quite a bit of difference. I like Smid and until his arrows head in the wrong direction I think he is a valuable piece to keep. He will be worth his weight soon enough.
Now the “offence from the last pairing” ties into Smid as well because I think one of the good things the Oilers can do right now is pair Smid and Peckham on the last pairing and simply limit their mins if they are struggling. The argument I keep getting myself into is that if the Oilers pair those two together, they will not bring more offence than they give up. Now I agree that this is true, but I think that over all it wont be such a huge issue. I think that they would come out of the year as minus players, but I also think that they would have the capability to shutdown a whole lot more than they gave up. True, the offence wouldn’t come from them but as long as it is made up for in other areas it really doesn’t matter. What I want to see is a true shutdown and TOUGH pairing. They are both tough so that’s a plus, and Smid has the defense first mentality that starts breeding a shutdown pairing.
And then there is Foster. Foster was a pretty decent offensive defenseman last season and the Oilers seem to have figured they could use him to replace Souray’s shot. Personally I don’t think there is room for a power play specialist on this team right now. I think he would be best used a 5-6 defenseman, or an idea that really struck me as an idea that might work, is putting him on the 4th line and use him as a specialist. I have little care for keeping him or anyone else “happy”. I prefer to build a team that will have a lasting winning mentality, and whatever moves that will make the team better over all is a plus to me.
until next time.
No comments:
Post a Comment