SMITH EARNS RAVE REVIEWS IN FIRST HALF

CALGARY - The ballots are in. The votes cast.
And one name towers above the rest.
"Oh, Smitty,'' replies skipper Mark Giordano. "Gotta be Smitty."
Micheal Ferland ponders the alternatives a moment before answering: "That's tough. Johnny's been awesome. Mony, too. But I've gotta give it to Smitty."
"Mike Smith,'' replies Curtis Lazar, puzzled that you'd even need to ask. "I'd think it's pretty much consensus, right?"
Pretty much.
So what say ye, Kris Versteeg?
"Mike Smith. Between him and Johnny, but Smith. For sure."

Sam Bennett?
"Tough to go against Smitty."
Starting to detect a trend here?
Oh, there are other viable options for the Flames' halfway-pole MVP: Giordano and his burnished professionalism; Gaudreau and his disco-ball spin-dazzle; Sean Monahan and his savage ruthlessness in front of the goal; and Matthew Tkachuk and his felicitous mix of craft and corrosiveness.
Still, Smith has shone since donning the Flaming C.
"I think being around the league, in a few different situations, has helped me coming into a new team," Smith reckons. "The first time I was traded felt a lot different than this time. The guys in here - this is one of the best groups I've been around - have really helped the transition. Personally, getting off to a good start was important, too.
"I think I've learned a lot about myself and my game the last two, three years in Arizona. Spent a lot of time with my long-time goalie coach, John Elkin, working on concentrating on what I can control instead of worrying about everything going on around me.
"Sometimes I'd get too involved in the winning and losing and maybe putting too much of the vocal leadership on my shoulders."
Smith's numbers are solid - 17 of the team's 20 wins, two shutouts, a .920 save percentage and 2.56 GAA.
His influence, though, delves far deeper.
Why, slamming the brakes on that numbing 29-game, decade-long run of losing at the Honda Center in Anaheim back in early October - via a 43-save shutout, no less - in itself warrants the man a commemorative bust prominently displayed somewhere on Stephen Ave.

"His compete level,'' lauds goaltending coach Jordan Sigalet, "is contagious. So is his preparation, his focus.
"He's been a voice in the room when needed, too. He picks his spots. If you're always talking, guys tend to tune you out after a while. Smitty knows when to pipe up.
"And obviously his playing the puck has helped us a lot. No one does that better."
Smith, in true old-school No.-1 fashion, thrives on a punishing workload, as well, logging 2,035 minutes through the first 41 games.
"Not taking anything away from what other guys in this room, Johnny, Mony, Gio, have done through the first half,'' says Lazar. "But nights when we don't show up or need some time to find our feet, Smitty still gives us a chance.
"He steals games, keeps us in games.
"What else can you ask of a goalie?
"The presence he has around the room matters, too. Vocal guy. Intense guy. That rubs off on everyone. The odd time when he comes in and kinda freaks out on us a bit, we listen.
"I mean, wouldn't you?
"Behind the scenes he's a laid-back guy who likes to joke around and have fun. But when it's business time, he gets right down to it. And I think that's why he's been our MVP. And that's not going to change. It's just the way he's wired."
That wiring, Smith knows, comes with a lifelong warranty and is guaranteed to never wear out or short-circuit.
"That's just me. I'm a competitive person. It's in my blood. I'm not going to change. That's part of who I am. And I'm still an emotional guy, don't get me wrong. But I've worked on not getting caught up in the dips and dives, the highs and lows, through the course of one game, one week or the course of a season.
"Shane Doan always told me: 'It's the ebbs and flows.' Pretty simple, right? Easy to say. Harder to do.
"Once you find a balance, that's when you play your best hockey."

Time for a few more ballots to be cast.
So, Matt Stajan?
"Well, you can't go wrong with Mike Smith,'' is the reply. "Gio. Johnny. Good choices, too. But if I had to choose one … Smitty."
And you, Michael Stone?
"Oh, man. Mike Smith has been pretty darned good."
When canvassed, the one man whose vote counts double joins the chorus.
"I'd have to say Smitty,'' chimes in boss Glen Gulutzan. "Either Gio or Smitty. Two great pros. (Smith) has been solid the whole way through.
"And heading into the second half of the season we're going to need him to continue to be."
Vitally, Mike Smith has embraced making the quantum leap from relative obscurity in Arizona to the notoriety in Calgary. Many a player has arrived here waxing eloquent about the chance to live and play inside the scrutiny of a Canadian city, only to find the heat in the kitchen a tad too toasty.
Not this guy.
"After the trade when I first talked to Brad (GM Treliving), he said to me: 'Every good Canadian boy deserves the chance play in a Canadian market at least once in his career.'
"I never really thought much of it at the time. Then I got here and began to realize how much the Flames mean to this community.
"Brad was right - It is special.
"I played in three non-traditional hockey markets in my career before this and then to come here, where everyone eats, breathes and lives the game has been really refreshing. People are passionate about hockey. I respect that. That was me a few years ago, growing up in Ontario
"For me, it's all been very enjoyable." Small smile. "I've had to pull out a few sweaters and coats I haven't used in a while but that's okay.
"My family's adapted well. There's tons to do. Everyone's friendly.
"Hopefully I'm able to finish my career as a Flame. That would mean the world to me."