Original Misfit Reilly Smith Trade Bait, Second Consecutive Game

On Sunday, the New York Rangers took on the Nashville Predators. The Rangers won 4-0, but the game’s actual story came a few hours before puck drop when it was reported that former Vegas Golden Knight Reilly Smith would be held out for “roster management purposes.”

On Monday, the process repeated. The Rangers beat the New York Islanders 4-0, but did so without Smith, who was again held out of the lineup. 

It certainly appears like the Original Misfit is going to be on the move again. If so, this will be his fourth trade in the past three years. 

On June 28, 2023, the Golden Knights flipped Smith to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a 2024 third-round pick and used the salary cap space to re-sign Ivan Barbashev. Smith played 76 games in Pittsburgh and scored 13 goals and 40 points.

In the summer of 2024, the Penguins traded Smith to the New York Rangers for a 2027 second-round pick and a 2025 fifth-round pick. The Penguins retained 25% of his salary. He recorded 10 goals and 29 points through 58 games with the Rangers.

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There’s no shortage of contending teams that could use a player like Smith. He’s a top-six scoring winger who can produce at even strength and on the power play. Smith is even a threat to score shorthanded, as he has 15 goals and 24 points in his career. He’s defensively responsible and is a good penalty killer. Smith won the Stanley Cup with the Golden Knights in 2023 and is a playoff performer.  

Because the Penguins retained 25% of his salary, his cap hit is only $3.75 million, and he’s a pending UFA.

Per Elliotte Friedman, Reilly Smith submitted his 8-team no-trade list to the Rangers. According to Friedman, he would prefer a trade to a US team, and it’s possible that his 8-team no-trade list almost entirely consists of teams north of the border.