With the injury bug finally behind him, Mike Smith is back. Bigly.
The Arizona Coyotes goaltender has battled consistency through his time in the desert, but he's also been no stranger to the injury ward.
No ailment was more significant than last year's double hernia, which sidelined the veteran netminder for 40 games, an injury he tried to play through before ultimately undergoing core muscle surgery last December.
Making his return on March 12 - a 4-0 shutout win over the Edmonton Oilers - Smith has since appeared in 20 games. He's faced 680 shots in the stretch, allowing just 43 goals, good for a .937 save percentage.
Related: Mike Smith turns in career-high 58 saves in loss to Blue Jackets
Coyotes goalie coach Jon Elkin, who has coached Smith since he was 12 years old, attributes a clean bill of health to the rebound performance.
"Apart from the minor setback with the (left) knee earlier this year, he's the healthiest he has been in a long, long time," Elkin told Arizona Sports reporter Craig Morgan last week. "Technically, with all the work he has put in a little more than a year, he's as sound as he’s ever been.
"We've got him low again. The puck comes from the ice and he's a big guy to begin with so by getting low, it gets you dialed in, it allows you to track the puck so much better and it helps you move that much better because you're in an athletic stance."
Smith's strong play has continued through the current season, and aside from that knee injury that kept him out of the lineup for 12 games, he's back to performing as he did his first year in Arizona.
| Season | GP | Record | GAA | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016-17 | 10 | 4-2-3 | 2.64 | .930 |
| 2015-16 | 32 | 15-13-2 | 2.63 | .916 |
| 2014-15 | 62 | 14-42-5 | 3.16 | .904 |
| 2013-14 | 62 | 27-21-10 | 2.64 | .915 |
| 2012-13 | 34 | 15-12-5 | 2.58 | .910 |
| 2011-12 | 67 | 38-18-10 | 2.21 | .930 |
In that 2011-2012 season, Smith won 38 games and posted a .930 save percentage - he's now matched that figure this season - and pushed the Coyotes to their first playoff series win since the franchise left Winnipeg in 1996.
"I've always stressed that health is pretty important and since I came back from my injury I've felt like I could do things I haven't been able to do for a few years," Smith told Morgan. "The knee injury was frustrating earlier this year because coming into camp I felt like I was in my best shape maybe in three to four years, but having been through it before I knew how to get back and I feel good now."
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