Thats the other thing about Schmaltz and probably why Chicago traded him (beyond the other more obvious reasons) is that he is pretty frail and seemingly is always dinged up after a sizable hit. Then he comes back from injury and avoids contact even more like he has an allergy to it, just wait.
This is his fourth injury in only a few years since coming into the NHL (two upper body, two lower body)
- Stan_Bowman
I try to take that stuff with a grain of salt, and see what happens. Anyone can get injured in hockey and a lot of skill players don't look like they grind. Easy to get a reputation if you play a certain style and happen to take a couple injuries.
That said, it doesn't mean you are wrong, just that I like to keep an open mind.
Offensively he looks great, but it's concerning that the other best players have better numbers away from him. Its also only a few games too, no one else scores on the team and he may be trying to do too much. Plus, Nick Shmaltz is probably mismatched as far as coverage goes relative to other first line centres.
Would his possession numbers look better on a team where he was the #2 or #3 centre? I think so, but again, who knows.