DETROIT – Givani Smith scored a goal, assisted on another and got into a fight in Florida earlier this season.
The rare Gordie Howe Hat Trick didn’t earn him a regular spot in the Detroit Red Wings lineup, however. He was back in Grand Rapids a week later.
Smith returned to the Red Wings on Monday and is expected to be in the lineup Tuesday at Florida, the start of a tough four-game trip with games against the Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning.
What can the abrasive, 6-2, 210-pound winger to stick around this time?
“Probably the mostly important thing is he’s got to manage the puck through the neutral zone,” Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill said. “He’s got to be a simple player through the neutral zone, so he can get it where he’s at his best, and that’s in the offensive zone. Be hard on the forecheck, win puck battles and then grind down low and be a menace in front of the net.
“When he struggles is when he over-complicates it through the neutral zone and tries to make too many plays and turns pucks over. That’ll be what he’s judged on, and if he can make sure his work ethic is to the level we all were over the course of this past weekend and he can manage it through the neutral zone, then he’ll have a chance to be effective.”
Smith has four points (goal, three assists) in eight games with the Red Wings this season. He has picked up eight points (four goals, four assists) in 11 games with the Griffins.
Smith was recalled because Bobby Ryan likely will miss Tuesday’s game due to an upper-body injury suffered in Sunday’s 4-1 victory over Columbus. Blashill said Ryan is day-to-day and shouldn’t be out more than a week. He skated by himself before practice Monday in a warmup suit.
Sam Gagner did not practice Monday, but Blashill said he is expected to play Tuesday.
The Red Wings (12-20-4) are coming off two of their best performances of the season and will try to win three in a row for the first time. They outscored Columbus 7-2, with a combined 63-39 edge in shots on goal, following a 7-1 loss at Nashville Thursday.
“You get slapped in the face like that you better respond,” Blashill said. “What I liked about it is it’s easy to respond on Friday in practice and then it’s easy to respond on Saturday, but we came back and did it again on Sunday. That tells me not only is it a response but it’s something we’re capable of continuing.
“We didn’t give up a chance, by our stats, in the third period. We continued to play the right way. We have to do everything we can on a nightly basis to have our work and compete to a level it was this weekend. That’s an extraordinary level when you’re winning that work-ethic battle and compete battle every single shift.”
The Panthers (22-9-4) are coming off a pair of wins at Dallas. Florida is 10-2-0 in its past 12 against the Red Wings.
More: Keys to Red Wings’ weekend response
The Link LonkMarch 30, 2021 at 02:41AM
https://www.mlive.com/redwings/2021/03/what-givani-smith-needs-to-show-red-wings-in-latest-stint.html
What Givani Smith needs to show Red Wings in latest stint - MLive.com
https://news.google.com/search?q=Red&hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en
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