Reilly Smith should be the NESN 7th player award winner
By Willy
Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Sports
You heard it here first. In my opinion this is a No-Brainer. Some may and will vote for little Torey Krug as their 7th player but for me it’s Reilly Smith all the way.
Before the season started I did an expose on all the new additions and/or players competing for a spot with the Bruins. My first choice to make it (besides Loui Eriksson) was Smith. What Reilly has to offer is a good blend of speed, though certainly not as fast as a Ryan Spooner or probably not even Danny Paille but he can fly when he wants to. I also pointed out that he has worked hard on his defensive game even though that wasn’t a pre-requisite in Dallas. What I was unaware of was just how good his hands are and his overall hockey sense. When he is in a scoring area he rarely misses an opportunity to score. He may not initiate a lot of contact but he doesn’t purposely try to avoid it either, unlike Tyler Seguin.
We have yet to see the best of Loui Eriksson, mostly due to injury but thank goodness Smith has exploded on the scene or B’s G.M. Peter Chiarelli would have been flogged already. According to Bruins President Cam Neely his crew liked Smith from the get-go and wanted him included in the trade with Dallas. He also admitted that they didn’t expect this kind of output from the former Dallas Star. In other words Reilly is a pleasant surprise, I have to agree.
I have never cared for this award, often thought of it as a bit of a curse more than an honor. I’ve seen too many recipients not carry the play forward, instead resting on their laurels. I don’t see that happening with Reilly but if it does, the Bruins may want to think about doing away with the award. Hope you enjoy the new wheels Reilly, you’ve earned them. Go B’s!