Dallas Stars: Gemel Smith Claimed by the Boston Bruins
By Summer LeBel
After being placed on waivers by the Dallas Stars yesterday, Gemel Smith is headed to Boston.
Gemel Smith was moved because Martin Hanzal is ready to come back, so the Dallas Stars needed a roster spot for him.
Smith is the second young forward the Stars have lost to waivers this year. At the start of the season, Remi Elie was claimed by the Buffalo Sabres.
Smith has had an alright season so far, but it hasn’t been super impressive. This lead to him being healthy scratched about half of the time and ending up lower on the depth chart when it was time for Hanzal to return.
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Hanzal hasn’t played at all this season, so it still remains to be seen if he’ll play better than Smith was playing. Hanzal certainly makes more money, but his injuries have left a big question mark over his play right now.
The decision of how to clear the roster spot came down to either waiving Smith or sending Roope Hintz back down to the AHL. With how well Hintz has played during this call-up, it was a logical choice for the team to make.
The team technically could’ve waived one of their other players who’ve been sitting in the press box recently and drawing the ire of fans, like Brett Ritchie or Valeri Nichushkin. However, there’s very little chance either of them would’ve cleared, and Smith has already cleared once recently.
During the arbitration process for his salary extension this summer, Smith had to clear waivers, which he did successfully. Since then, he hasn’t had an explosive season, so it stands to reason that the team thought he had the best chance of clearing.
While his claiming is rough for the team right now, especially with Hanzal as an unknown, it’s not terrible for the team in the long run. There are a lot of forward prospects waiting in the wings who will need space on the roster and under the salary cap. Smith getting claimed isn’t ideal, but it does clear up some space for the likes of Nick Caamano, Jason Robertson, and Ty Dellandrea.
For fans hoping to see him again soon, Smith won’t get a chance to play his former team this season as the Bruins and Stars have already finished their series this year.
Next. Smith on Waivers, Hanzal Cleared to Play. dark
This is, of course, unless they meet in the Stanley Cup Final.