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The Vegas Golden Knights were recently eliminated by the Oilers in the second round of the playoffs. Still, with limited cap space, the Golden Knights will have tough decisions to make. One of those is pending free agent Reilly Smith. We look at the best destination for Reilly Smith this offseason.
Reilly Smith re-joined the Golden Knights during the regular season. In the middle of the season, the Rangers sent Smith to the Golden Knights in exchange for Brendan Brisson and a third-round pick in the 2025 NHL draft. Smith would score three goals and add eight assists in his 21 games with Vegas. While his production has declined come from his first stint with Vegas, he is still a quality forward who could fill bottom-six needs for multiple teams.
Smith has made it clear, he would like to stay in Vegas this offseason. Still, the Golden Knights have just $9.6 million in cap space according to Cap Wages. Smith was a cap casualty his first time around with Vegas, when he was traded to the Penguins to save cap space for the Golden Knights. While Smith wants to stay in Vegas, it is possible they do not keep him this offseason. We look at three destinations for Smith if he leaves the Golden Knights.
Smith stays in the division
The Kings were eliminated by the Oilers in the playoffs for a fourth straight year. The Kings are expected to be aggressive in boosting their top nine on the forward lines. Los Angeles is expected to have over $23 million in cap space this offseason. They will need to work out a contract with restricted free agent Alex Laferriere while potentially bringing back Andrei Kuzmenko. Still, they will have money to help with their lower-line forwards.
First, the Kings were a solid defense and penalty kill team. Smith could help with a small upgrade to the penalty kill. Still, they were 27th in the NHL on the power play this past season. While the top power play unit with Kuzmenko, Quinton Byfield, Anze Kopitar, Adrian Kempe, and Kevin Fiala is solid, they do not have a lot of production from the second unit. While Smith has not played much on the power play in the last two seasons, he averaged over ten power play points per year in his first stint with Vegas.
The Maple Leafs look for playoff experience
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The Maple Leafs will need to add depth to their checking lines. First, both Max Pacioretty and Steven Lorentz are unrestricted free agents. Paciortetty has not played over 50 games in a year since the 2019-202o season. Meanwhile, Riley Smith has played 50 or more games every year in the 2013-2014 season. Further, Pacioretty had a minus-two plus/minus rating this past year. His defensive skills have declined in recent years. Smith, on the other hand, has not had a negative plus/minus rating since the 2016-17 season with the Panthers.
Smith will help the power play for the Maple Leafs, but will also help a lot on the penalty kill. He has been a top-quality penalty killer since his first stint with the Golden Knights. The Maple Leafs were 17th in the NHL on the penalty kill this past year. Finally, Smith has playoff experience. He was part of the 2018 Golden Knights team that went to the Stanley Cup Finals, and also part of the 2023 championship team. The Maple Leafs have not made it to the conference finals since the 2001-02 season.
The Devils need depth at forward
The Devils once again experienced playoff disappointment, falling in round one to the Hurricanes. Like the Maple Leafs, the Devils could use the positive playoff experience that Smith would bring. They have not been to the conference finals since falling to the Kings in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2012. The Devils are expected to have over $20 million in cap space this offseason and will be able to spend this offseason. The Devils were strong on both the power play and penalty kill this past year, but scoring outside the top two lines was not there.
Stefan Noesen was the top-scoring option outside of a top-two line player. He scored 22 goals and 19 assists this past year. Still, 11 of the goals and four of the assists came on the power play. This means just 11 goals and 15 assists came in 5v5 situations. Meanwhile, Reilly Smith had 11 games and 23 assists in non-power play situations. His 40 total points were also one of Smith's lower-producing years. If he can get back to the same production he had in Vegas, Smith will be a top-scoring option for the third line for the Devils. This could solve some scoring options when injuries come, as they did this year with Jack Hughes.
