In The Best Way Possible, The Devils 1st Round Pick Of Ty Smith Was Basically Made For Them6/23/2018
Since kneeling in worship at the work of Ray Shero has quickly become my customary response to almost all of his masterful acts of management, it brings me momentary sadness to inform you that not even I can fully credit the Devils' GM with the first round selection of Ty Smith. While he was the one that stood on stage and made it, the automated list by which your forgetful friend "drafts" his fantasy team could have just as easily done so. I don't know if you happened to catch the announcement of the Hart Trophy winner, but it provided a pretty good reminder that Ray Shero's standards of success are far above that of someone like...oh, I don't know...let's say Peter Chiarelli. Therefore, not falling victim to overthinking when the easiest of decisions fell right into his lap doesn't register as a huge win by him personally, even if it could turn out to be a monster victory for the franchise he's rapidly made reputable. We're years away from finding out whether or not Ty Smith reaches his potential as a fleet-of-foot two-way defenseman that thinks the game at as high a level as he played it in putting up a ludicrous number of points in the WHL. That said, his potential was basically that of the lovechild of 'best player available' and 'organizational need' for the New Jersey. I would say that the left-handed blue liner with legs for days and leadership qualities (Captain of Team Canada U-18) could really Ty up some loose ends in the Devils' lineup. However, there will be plenty of time for the nauseating forcing of puns if he comes even remotely close to remotely close of fulfilling the promise of the Drew Doughty or Duncan Keith comparisons that I've seen (far too liberally, mind you) floated. In making a laughably premature projection, the only opinion you could possibly come away with is that a ton of value was gotten out of the 17th pick and that's really the best you can ask for when predicting the development of underdeveloped teenagers. The area in which Ty Smith comes up the most short is size, but if he were three inches taller he probably would have been picked in the top ten instead of just being ranked there by a multitude of sources much more knowledgeable than I. If nothing else, that's a testament to his wide variety of merit-based talents that the Devils just added to a prospect pool that was specifically lacking in well-rounded defenseman that check all of the boxes that pertain to upside. I don't know if the streak of success they stumbled upon with Nico Hischier, Will Butcher, and Jesper Bratt is a sign of what's to come from their scouting department, but just as things broke right for them this past season, they broke about as well as you could have hoped for them last night. Ty Smith could end being quite the addition to Ray Shero's resume, even if it would realistically be more of a black mark on those of the GM's that picked before him...
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