RYAN SMYTH 
This season: 67 games, 22 goals, 31 assists, 42 penalty minutes, 19:40 average ice time.
The good: Smyth exceeded all reasonable expectations for himself, and his presence on the ice helped bring the best out of Anze Kopitar and propel Kopitar’s career year. Smyth’s ability and willingness to go to the front of the net and work for deflections and rebounds made a huge positive impact, and Smyth’s impact was greatly felt when he was out of the lineup with injury.
The bad: Smyth is 34 and plays a fearless game in which he is regularly in front of the net, deflecting pucks with various parts of his body, and also spends time trying to dig out pucks behind the net and in the corners. It’s an effective game, and an admirable one, but it also puts him at risk for injury, particularly as he ages. Smyth has missed 47 games over the past three seasons.
Going forward: The Kings have Smyth under contract for two more season. The salary-cap hit is significant ($6.25 million), but if Smyth can stay healthy and productive and help bring the same type of play out of Kopitar as he did this season, the Kings will consider it a worthy investment.
I gave the guy a B, even though I was thinking of a C. The guy dipped substantially near the end of the season and into the playoffs. He was not physical, nor did he battle in the corners. In fact, he was not an impact whatsoever, which is odd because he is known to be a good playoff player.
Now he’s injured again. A man of his age, especially one who is prone to injuries, should not have played in the World Championships. But hey, who am I to say so?
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Johnny Utah Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 11:22 am
@the Kings Need to Get Tough and Drop the Gloves,
QFT – “The guy dipped substantially near the end of the season and into the playoffs.”
Big time – where was Captain Canada in that Canucks’ series?
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tantrum4 Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:51 pm
@Johnny Utah,
Sorry, but one player does not lose you a series. Where was Burrows in the series against the Kings? One empty net goal for the 35 goal scorer, and they still found a way to win.
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USHA#17 Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:28 pm
@tantrum4,
I agree with JU and Drop ‘em
How do you turn your nose up to a 20 goal scorer?
More so a Center responsible for the fast start and teaching a team to believe in themselves?
Well, when that Center runs out of gas at game 60 and is invisible for all but 10 minutes of a playoff series.
Perhaps injury, perhaps conditioning however If Smyth is able to upgrade his late season stamina I’ll upgrade my assessment.
@ JohnnyUtah, your right, did you see how bad the Canucks really were in the Chicago Series?
First place in the N. West was equal to 3rd place in the Pacific.
If Smyth showed, Frolov used his body, Williams sat and Jones got lost I believe the Kings would have taken them…and then looked just as bad against the Hawks.
USHA#17 Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
@tantrum4,
stamina I’ll upgrade my assessment.
I feel JohnnyUtah, is right, did you see how bad the Canucks really were in the Chicago Series?
First place in the N. West was equal to 3rd place in the Pacific.
If Smyth showed, Frolov used his body, Williams sat and Jones got lost I believe the Kings would have taken them…and then looked just as bad against the Hawks.
the Kings Need to Get Tough and Drop the Gloves Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 4:08 pm
@tantrum4,
Who said the one player lost the series for the kings?
All that was said is that Smyth pulled a disappearing act, similar to that of a magician, when it mattered…
IMO he was one of he big reasons the Kings where much improved this year.B+.
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longbeachyo Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:55 pm
@Jack, No doubt he helped the Kings get into the playoffs. But with all the money he is making, we need him to play at the same level the WHOLE year! I wouldn’t say he played poorly, but he sure wasn’t the same impact player he was at the beginning of the year.
1st half = A
post Olympic break = D
Overall B-/C+
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mrk Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 4:10 pm
@longbeachyo,
Right with you on your letter grades.
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TV Ratings for Monday’s Game 5 Boston/Philly –
“The Bruins went head-to-head with Red Sox-Yankees and
Celtics-Cavaliers.
The Bruins averaged 8.3 local rating on Versus
The Red Sox a 6.3 local rating on NESN
The Celtics a 4.1 local rating on ESPN
That translates to 200,000 households for the Bruins, 153,000 for the Red Sox and 99,000 for the Celtics.”
Also of note is that both NBA and NHL were in playoffs, so the argument that NHL got higher ratings due to playoffs only is a wash.
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Matt George Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 10:35 am
@Matt George,
WUPS
Sunday games…not Monday.
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Matt George Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 10:39 am
@Matt George,
GAARRR!!
I just found out an error with the report… too bad I can’t delete!!!!
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variable Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 10:57 am
@Matt George,
matty…
were those regional or national ratings…?…8.3 (?!)…that would be record…!
BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:27 pm
Think those were regional…
They were talking about them yesterday on XM Home Ice…
Still–imagine that hockey beat basketball on TV during the playoffs, SOUNDLY! It’s still early for baseball, so the comparison doesn’t really mean much.
Matt George–your point is a GOOD ONE.
This was really tough… he did what we acquired him to do, but for some reason it doesn’t seem like it? Does that make sense to anybody?
I gave him a B. ‘A’ is only reserved to players like Doughty, Simmonds, Kopitar, and Handzus. Smyth was very good, and a huge reason why we were so improved, but I feel he could do more.
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I gave him a B+.
He brought a HUGE game out of Kopi early. After he was hurt he didn’t seem to have the same game or really snap back into the clicking they had.
I hope they have a full healthy season and he rebounds…especially after breaking the ankle the other day. sheesh.
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I am sure many will disagree, but here goes….
Before his injury, I was surprised at how good Smyth was. I have of course watched him through the years, but had never realized how good he could be at all facets of the game.
After the Olympics and throughout the playoffs, I was VERY surprised at how badly he played. He lost his energy, his extra effort and his guile as the year went on. Excepted for limited stretches, he was totally ineffective at the end of the year and into the playoffs If I was the coach, I would have seriously thought about sitting him down.
I understand he is inspirational and a leader, but I couldn’t see how a guy who – at the end of the year and in the playoffs – got pinned against the boards time and time again, lost the puck repeatedly, and did little creative in the offensive zone, was an inspiration to young guys who in my view were doing a better job than he was.
With all that said, he was tremendous at the beginning of the year and he is obviously a guy I want on this team. I hope that next year we see Smyth from the first half of the year – and I hope we see him on the second line which is clearly the place he should be.
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“b+”…
my only issue with smytty has to do with nothing that he can control…i think his atoi needs to come down a little bit…almost 20mins per game…i think if you take away a shift or two and get him down to about 17-18 per game, at age 34, he might be a little less susceptible to injury and could be a fresher player towards the end of the season and the playoffs…
otherwise, he was usually on his game and had an immediate impact during the first quarter of the season…
RICH…
does colorado still share the cap hit for next season as well…?
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BringBackTheShieldJersey Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:40 pm
@variable, Smyth’s ice-time issue is only one of three such problems that the Kings have. And these stem from mis-matched partners from a talent and/or age perspective. #1 Doughty and Scuds: they want Doughty to play 28+ minutes, but not Scuds. #2 Kopitar and Smyth: they want Kopitar to play at least 4 minutes more than Smyth. #3 This problem should have emerged already, but will increasingly become apparent- Hanzus and Simmonds: imo Simmonds was under-played and fits into many roles; Hanzus plays many roles (not all of which overlap with Simmonds) and, as good as he played, was over-used.
Now maybe this one isn’t all TM’s fault (though of course I think he exacerbates the problem), but the Kings’ lines and pairings are not put together in a way that they stay together. Aside from all the juggling that TM does, people are always needing to fill in for others. And this is writ large with the 4th line, which plays together maybe 4 shifts a game, but individuals from the line pop up here, there, everywhere, and nowhere.
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variable Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:12 pm
@BringBackTheShieldJersey,
i respect yr theory re: atoi…
i absolutely thought that simmer could have spelled smytty from time-to-time…the d-men pairing, on the other hand, had to be done that way…and most teams have one or two thoroughbreds that log the majority of time on the back end…
defensive atoi differentials are usually due to special teams involvement…so i think that yr not taking into account that players have their roles…
scuds playing less time than doughty is a direct result of him not playing on any of the pp units…
kopi is our #1 center and he will and should be on the ice when the game is on the line…it’s not very common to have a winger play more than his center…
but i’m not so critical of the constant line changes as i have been in the past…sure, like many here, it’s an easy target for humor…
but realistically, we don’t have a “top” line etched in stone…
i think it’s rare that you can role out a line of crosby/malkin/guerin…or what san jose can do with big joe/marleau/heatley…so as fans, we think that if we are not doing what the elite teams are doing, we are doing something wrong with our line combos…
well, not exactly…
if we were a serious contender, two things would be true…:
- our top line would be not in question…as much as i think jw is a good player, he’s not a first-line winger…and, to be even more frank, as much as i like smytty playing with kopi and how their games compliment each other, i still believe that he kings are willing and needing to find someone else in the big-picture…i think that smytty played great as a first-liner and i’m not saying that he can’t do it again…but i would like to see him on a second-line…in a perfect-kings world, i truly believe that he is exactly the secondary scoring punch we need at this point of his career…
- it wouldn’t matter where anyone plays…the game is all about match-ups and adjustments…true, the elite teams are consistent with there line combos…but they are equally as consistent in changing things fast and furious when things don’t work…all coaches change lines…yes…tm is quick at times to juggle things up…but what has this young team established up until this point…?…nothing…so, i think it’s more a question of the kings still going through the maturation process of learning how to play all together and realizing that the team still needs players from within to emerge into their designated roles for it to all come together…
an example of a coach making the right decision at the right time was vigneault when he moved samuelsson to the top line vs. us…and look what happened…?
jeff halpern is no mikael samuelsson…so i think we were limited as to how to counter-punch…and make no mistake about it…from game 4 onward, the kings were almost exclusively counter-punching…and they got figured out rather quickly by the experienced players on the ‘nyuks…
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wavesinair Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:35 pm
@variable, re: “needing players from within to emerge” and counter-punching
the yucks eventually overwhelmed us with speed, or rather our lack thereof. and while I was so very surprised at just how much our young players grew this season, I still don’t think that will help improve our overall team speed for next year, even if they continue their amazing growth spurt. so… help from the outside in this respect seems like a very important step in this team’s progression. agree? plus, smitty and jw certainly aren’t going to help…
variable Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:48 pm
WAVES…
yr absolutely right about team speed…i agree…and i think i comment about the need for change on the top line for the long run in my post above…
what i did fail to say, which i thought was clearly obvious, but should have been pointed out by myself in my explanation was the speed component…
regardless of how we get it…whether it be from the minors, via trade or free agency…it is something that has to be addressed this off-season, fo’ sure…!
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I too was disappointed with his play during the playoffs. Did not contribute much. On a few plays he was caught out of position, seemed slow and produced turnovers. Note how well he is paid.
Yes, I think his overall effect on the team is positive.
I was really upset to hear that he was playing in the World Championships esp. that he broke an ankle. Seems like he really should be resting in the office season.
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VanKingsFan Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:12 pm
@Steve S.,
How can you be upset that he wanted to represent his country in his favourite sport, nay his favourite thing in the entire world?? His nickname is given for a reason.
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Steve S. Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 8:28 pm
@VanKingsFan,
Because he does not have the stamina to do it and his promary obligation is to his NHL team.
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One of the biggest surprises for me this season. I really enjoyed watching him play around the net. I think he is also a good mentor for the younger players, especially D2.
Glad to see him back for another couple of years.
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A link about Brayden Schenn and the Brandon Wheat Kings…
http://www.thehockeynews.com/articles/33553-Brandon-Wheat-Kings-the-Green-Bay-Packers-of-the-WHL-seek-first-Memorial-Cup.html
Something tells me Smyth was hurt BEFORE the playoffs began…
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variable Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy,
re: smytty…
i agree, B…i thought he was hurt, too…
who knows if he ever fully recovered from the exoskeleton injury…i also remember him taking a huge hit early in the series where he missed a shift or two…but he’s playing now and must be healthy enough to compete…so i guess it wasn’t a big deal or he is fine and his sluggish play in the playoffs was due to fatigue and the ‘nyuks defense…
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BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 12:36 pm
Yaah V–
Motivation for Smyth to stay in the game, take the lumps and play through pain was also there. He was a designated leader. I doubt he’d ever complain about an injury under those circumstances.
I had the feeling at points during the Canucks series that the Kings were playing a few players short of a full deck at forward. I’m one of those who believe Brayden Schenn makes the team next year, and the Kings finally are top-flight talent-wise. If only Kopi can learn to win a few face-offs in playoff pressure circumstances…
Love to see you at the Draft this June!
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variable Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:05 pm
@BakoCAkingsCondorsGuy,
yes…absolutely…re: draft…!
just waiting for the tix to go on sale…
I gave Smyth a B. I like what he adds to the team: character, experience, and net-presence. He’s still very good down low, and he’s got some moves left in his stick. However, I think the days of him being a first-line wing are over. He’s simply not fast enough, and the Kings overall lack of speed was exposed in the five-on-five play of the first round.
Now, in Smyth’s case, that could be due to his injuries this year, but his game is played in front of the net, which means he’s going to take punishment, so I wouldn’t put him on Kopitar’s line next season if a faster, younger winger can be found (e.g. Marleau, Kovalchuk).
I’m definitely happy Lombardi grabbed him last summer, but on most other teams, Smyth is a second-line player who perhaps plays on the first power play unit. To expect him to keep up at this stage in his career is probably asking too much.
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OT but I thought I’d tell this to you guys. I had a beer with Blake Comeau from the Islanders the other night and we were talking hockey, and then I brought up the Kings. He said “They have one guy that is really good now and is going to be scary good one day, Wayne Simmonds”. I thought that was pretty cool that he noticed that in only playing 2 games against us. I also brought up Matt Moulson and he kind of laughed and when his buddy (not a hockey player) said “Matt Moulson?”, Comeau replied, “yea they released him!” with a kind of disbelieving laugh…
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VanKingsFan Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:09 pm
@tantrum4, Cool story.. kid from my hometown (Josh Bailey) is on the Isle.
But if i hear one more Matt Moulson thing I am going to lose it lol … these things happen.. same way Detroit probably talks about letting Quincey go for example.
I would almost love it if Randy Jones went somewhere else and won the Norris trophy next year just to see what people would say lol
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puck73 Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 4:12 pm
@VanKingsFan, I agree, lol..Also, how bout no more “I wish we had Cammy” comments. Cammy was a poison pill and had ta shipped outta here just like Avery.
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B+ because we found out his real value when we didn’t have him… His role is not an easy one to get guys to play shift in and shift out. Let’s pray he stays healthy!!!
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Bernier is going to have to stand on his head……
http://theahl.com/bears-monarchs-set-to-tangle-p142621
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wavesinair Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:52 pm
@brandyn, Bernier has already been standing on his head. No reason to think it won’t continue…
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Wow…. Canada got beat pretty bad … the Swiss really have our number…
In funnier news… the USA lost again..Zero wins… possible relegation…
All kidding aside, I would love to hear how people from the USA feel about this. Most of you have said you don’t care about this tourny at all… which is the problem IMO. It makes me smile to think that Burkey must be having such a bad time lol
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wavesinair Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:57 pm
@VanKingsFan, With very little coverage here in the states, it’s kinda hard to get into it, but still…it’s a bummer they lost 3 in a row they should have won. Seems like they don’t have any sense of urgency as a team. I noticed toward the end of this last game, when they went down by 2 goals, they really laid it on hard. If they played that way from the start, they would probably have won at least 2 of these games. Don’t like the losses and don’t like that 2 Kings are among them.
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If only he didn’t shot it directly into Bobby Lou’s glove!
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Big Rob in Dallas Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
@Big Rob in Dallas, oops. Shoot it
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VanKingsFan Reply:
May 12th, 2010 at 2:06 pm
@Big Rob in Dallas, You can not possibly blame Smyth for that … he did what he was supposed to do when you have an open cage… shoot for the middle of the gaping space. If he tried to go top corner and hit the post/crossbar… then that makes it even worse.
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Big Rob in Dallas Reply:
May 13th, 2010 at 8:07 am
@VanKingsFan, Lot’s of people blame Fro for missing that breakaway. My mind, that’s an easier shot but Lou get’s paid as well to stop shots and I don’t blame either of them.
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Overall…B
A
For leadership and setting the example early last season.
B
For his reckless play to his own detriment…he really showed the rest of the team how to go to the front of the net.
C
For his inconstant play after he came back from injury
D
For taking too many stupid penalties…he knows better
F
Smyth is not the type of player that can play until he is 40. I expect all those injuries to catch up to him in these last few seasons he has left. His contract will hurt us in his final season.
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Anyone that gave him a A or B+ is nuts and didn’t watch any game after his return. He gets a C from me because he was not worth 6.25 million same with JW he was GREAT up until he broke his leg and that was it if he would have stayed at home and never came back into the line up I would give JW a better grade.
Both guys need repairs and need to heal. Like Rich said their age doesn’t help. Smyth just got hurt again so great news for the Kings that he gets hurt in a meaningless game for the same country that didn’t invite him for the Olympics. They did win gold without him though.. Like the dos equis guy, stay healthy my friends.
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B+ from me. Fearless guy, but that old demon “Age” has almost caught up to him.
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Whether it was age or injury that slowed him at the end of the year. There is no questioning the heart he played with. I think part of it was with a lower body injury you can’t stay in the same strength and being older he may have not reached the strength or stamina he started the season with after being shelfed for 8 weeks. As for playing in the Worlds he probably recognized that he wasn’t in the shape he should be in and looked at it a conditioning assignment. He’s a warrior I expect him back, and preform even better next year.
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I gave him an A.
He was everything I expected him to be.Before his injury he was a stud.The injury wasn’t his fault s^!t happens.Coming back from the injury he clearly needed more time to recover,but we clearly needed him to come back.
I don’t blame him for coming back from a bad injury and not playing well.Especially since he spent a lot of that time out of game shape while recovering,and I think he should get more credit for coming back and giving all he could.
Next season he’ll be a stud again.If he gets hurt,I hope we have the depth to let him heal 100% before coming back.Same with Willy.
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I agree that Smyth should be on the 2nd line, but you do we get to put on the 1st line. I don’t like JW there either. Where do we get the speed we need and the player the stand in front of the net? Trade? Free Agency? In the system? If we can get 2 players to play with Kopi on that #1 line the other lines will work themselves out. Please don’t mention you know who?
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rick Reply:
May 14th, 2010 at 10:43 am
@mckinggolf, It is hard not to mention him….Most everybody sees that we have two guys playing on the first line in Smyth and JW who really don’t belong there, and another alternative – Simmonds – who probably isn’t the right guy there either. No one in the system is ready for the first line either. Whether via trade or free agency, we need to upgrade.
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