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Smyth will get his shot
Wed, Oct 9, 2002
Veteran minor leaguer knows all roads don't end in AHL
By CHRIS STEVENSON -- Ottawa Sun
Brad Smyth faced the cameras and then hefted the black hockey bag with the Senators logo on it up onto his right shoulder.
He started down the long, yellow-walled corridor at the Corel Centre that leads from the Senators dressing room to the entrance for staff, players and media at the loading dock.
As Smyth walked slowly along, the cameramen backed up in front of him, filming his walk out of the Senators' picture -- for now.
They ought to call that long hallway The Yellow Mile.
The Senators dropped the axe on Smyth, rookie Jason Spezza and defenceman Brian Pothier yesterday. They were the last cuts of what had been one of the most competitive training camps the Senators have had.
The question must burn for each of them: What is the big difference between the three who walked The Yellow Mile yesterday and the last three who stayed behind and practiced?
The answer: Not much.
Of the three players assigned to the Senators' Binghamton farm club yesterday, Smyth and Pothier had the most to complain about, but took the high road to Binghamton.
Spezza, who spouted off last year when he was sent back to junior, handled yesterday's news more like man, because in one year, he is closer to man than boy.
He had to know the crowded picture at centre ice and his inexperience made a trip to Bingo the easiest way for the Senators to resolve his situation. He simply wasn't going to get the ice time he needs with the Senators at this point to develop as a pro.
Time in Binghamton on that club's top line, playing on the power play and lots of second chances to learn from mistakes are what the 19-year-old needs now.
For Smyth and Pothier, the decisions were not simply hockey related. Pothier was caught in a logjam on the blue line and was the victim of Joel Kwiatkowski's one-way contract. Pothier performed better in the pre-season, but he's on a two-way deal, which made it cheaper to send him down.
Smyth can look at Toni Dahlman and Dennis Bonvie, the two guys who made it ahead of him, and wonder why. Dahlman could be a good defensive forward and penalty killer and there's nothing wrong with that. Thing is, right now, the Senators have guys like Magnus Arvedson, Shaun Van Allen, Jody Hull and Mike Fisher who all fill those roles.
Bonvie is a scrapper who does his job well, but that's all he does and he was one of the first players brought in by a new GM. His spot will likely be taken by Chris Neil, who's included in the Senators' current 23-man roster, when he's healthy. In their current makeup, the Senators are carrying an extra two forwards.
The big complaint about this team the last couple of years has been not enough grit from the scorers. Martin complained just the other day about finding somebody -- anybody -- willing to go to the front of the net on the power play.
The 29-year-old Smyth showed some grit in pre-season. He is motivated. He knows he's not going to get too many more chances.
The man is a scorer, a gifted scorer. There's no question about that. To make the transition to the NHL, he needs to grow his game and he looked like he was giving the Senators what they needed: Grit and that willingness to go to the net until he went down with a hip pointer.
He dropped the gloves a couple of times in the pre-season and did very well.
But he knows about life on the bubble.
"I should be doing an endorsement in bubble gum ads," he said.
That's pretty remarkable for a guy to put a humorous spin on a situation that has to be difficult to handle.
The good news is none of the players who left town yesterday did so on a one-way ticket. There are going to be chances down the road, either because of injury or non-performance by others at the NHL level.
You might have seen those pictures of Smyth walking The Yellow Mile. Odds are they won't be the last you see of him. |
