Bye, Bye Darryl Smith

As you may have noticed on the transactions page, rookie center Darryl Smith has been called up to the Houston Aeros of the AHL, along with Corpus Christi IceRays rookie defenseman John Adams.

Word about Adams' departure was out previously, but the Aeros didn't want the Smith thing announced until he arrived in Houston and signed paperwork this morning. However, that is the announcement I was talking about in the previous post.

Smith is gone already and not at practice right now, while Serge Dube is also missing again and Jason Dixon appears to have called in sick. It looks kind of empty out there.

Obviously, this is a great thing for Smith, and Coach Ruskowski is genuinely thrilled for him. However, it's obviously bad timing for the Bucks as they've lost six of eight and are now losing one of their best players.

Smith is expected to play for the Aeros as they host the Lake Erie Monsters tonight, so I'll be sure to check up on how he does in the game. Ruskowski is looking to replace him A.S.A.P., but doesn't expect anyone to be coming in for tomorrow's game against the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees.

In Smith's absence, there are a few possibilities for top-line combinations, and Ruskowski said they depend mostly on Dube's health and whether or not he can play tomorrow. That decision will not be made until at least tomorrow morning, so I'll be going to the skate to see if he's out there or not.

If he isn't, the Bucks will be down to 16 skaters, putting some pressure on the guys who usually split shifts. Additionally, Ruskowski expects Bobby Russell to center a line tomorrow night due to the lack of centerman he currently has on his roster.

Selfishly, my first reaction to hearing last night that Smith had been called up was that I was disappointed to not be able to see him play on a regular basis anymore. He is always a lot of fun, even when he's just fooling around at practice. However, I obviously wish him all the best.

This announcement wasn't the least bit surprising, other than in timing, as Ruskowski and I, and even Smith and I, had often discussed the possibility of an AHL team giving him a shot. The Aeros were the team that had him try out with them prior to this season, so I guess they called dibs. I was half expecting the Rochester Americans to go after him because his old juniors coach is now helming that team, but guess not for now.

While in Laredo, Smith scored 19 goals and handed out 19 assists to lead the league's rookies with 38 points. He had a plus/minus ratio of plus-17, also the best among rookies. In points and plus/minus, he was only behind player/assistant coach Jeff Bes on the team.

Additionally, Smith had six power-play goals and nine power-play assists, as well as two shorthanded goals and five game-winners.

I'm pretty sure that when you see a kid score a hat trick in his first professional game, you set some high expectations for him, and Smith has not failed to meet those in any way.

Ruskowski has raved about the kid since before he even got here, and his hard work has gotten him exactly where he wanted to go. Now, let's see how the Bucks do without him.