The Detroit News’s Ted Kulfan filed a notebook article which discusses Givani Smith’s performance thus far in the preseason, which has been underwhelming:
Smith, 23, signed a two-year contact worth $1.5 million ($750,000 salary cap hit) during the offseason, a sign of the Wings’ faith in him.
He has the physical presence (6-foot-2, 215 pounds) and tough demeanor, the Wings’ need on the roster. But after three exhibition games, Smith has been relatively silent on the ice. He has no points and a minus-3 rating, averaging 11 minutes of ice time.
Coach Jeff Blashill said Smith could separate himself from the pack among the bottom-six forwards.
“He has to make sure he does a good job of getting the puck out of our end so he’s not playing a ton of defensive zone coverage,” Blashill said. “He has to get the puck deep when he gets into the neutral zone, forecheck hard and when he gets (the puck) in the offensive zone, he has to either take it to the net, or give it to somebody and get to the net and win all those net-front battles.”
