Reilly Smith will get look as right wing on Rangers first line
Many New York Rangers fans thought the acquisition of Reilly Smith from the Pittsburgh Penguins on July 1 would plug the hole at right wing on the No. 1 line with left wing Chris Kreider and center Mika Zibanejad. However, coach Peter Laviolette made it clear Wednesday that while Smith will get an opportunity to play on the top line during training camp, there are no guarantees.
“He’ll get a look there,” Laviolette told reporters prior to the official opening of training camp Thursday. “But it’s training camp, and I don’t want to box out things or box out people on Day One.
Also Read: Top 5 New York Rangers storylines for 2024-25 training camp
“We’ll practice, we’ll play exhibition games, we’ll scrimmage and start the season, and I think we’ll get to the point where we can get some continuity. That’s what I was trying to accomplish last year – trying to find the right fits and right pieces. There will be some looks for (Smith) in different positions.”
Kreider and Zibanejad have been one of the League’s most productive tandems for the past few seasons. Kreider was second on the Rangers last season with 39 goals and third with 75 points. Zibanejad was fourth with 26 goals and fifth with 72 points. Finding a right wing who can complement them was one of general manager Chris Drury’s biggest goals during the offseason.
Smith, the brother of former Rangers defenseman Brendan Smith, has been a steady point producer throughout his NHL career, which began with the Dallas Stars in 2011-12. His best numbers came with the Vegas Golden Knights from 2017-23; he had three 20-goal seasons, four 50-point seasons, and scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal for the Golden Knights in 2023 when they knocked off the Florida Panthers, the team that traded him to Vegas in the summer of 2018.
Reilly Smith looking to rebound with New York Rangers
The Golden Knights traded Smith to the Penguins on June 28, 2023, but his offensive numbers dropped sharply – from 26 goals to 13 and 56 points to 40. The Rangers acquired him for a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft and a second-rounder in 2027. Pittsburgh is paying $1.25 million of the $5 million he’ll make in the last season of a five-year contract.
The 33-year-old has 513 points (213 goals, 300 assists) in 840 games with the Stars, Boston Bruins, Panthers, Golden Knights, and Penguins, as well as 79 points (26 goals, 53 assists) in 106 playoff games. He’s been a plus player in each of the past seven seasons, and in all seven seasons that he’s taken part in the playoffs.
Smith is joining a team that won the Presidents’ Trophy as the League’s regular-season champion and came within two wins of its first trip to the Stanley Cup Final since 2014. Laviolette made a point to say the Rangers can’t rest on their laurels this season.
“We have to try to get better at what we’re doing,” he said. “There’s room to improve every year, to improve on what we did last year.”
Continuity is important, he said, but there will be chances for young players and newcomers such as Smith.
“I think we’ve had some really good continuity here for a few years, even before I got here (last year),” Laviolette said. “We have a core group that’s established itself. There are a lot of pieces in place who’ve played together not just last year but for three or four years.”
But he added, “There’s always an opportunity for you to jump out of your shoes, knock us in the head and say, ‘I am here. I have arrived’ — come in here and make as much noise as you want. Take whatever you want. We’re here watching.”
Also Read: New York Rangers look to continue alternate-jersey magic in 2024-25
More About:New York Rangers News