Training camp is progressing smoothly for the Rangers, with the first exhibition game scheduled for Sunday night and new faces on the right wing in Chris Kreider and Mika Zibagint.
As planned, Reilly Smith was acquired from the Penguins on July 1, filling a void that had been occupied by players old and new for eight years.
There's no need to count them or list their names anymore, everyone knows it's a huge list of players with different skills and backgrounds.
Is that even remotely intimidating for Smith, who is set to make his Blueshirt debut?
“I don’t think so,” he told The Post on Sunday after a scrimmage against a group that will not play in the match. “They’re obviously very good players and some guys have had success. [with them]But success comes in waves in the NHL, and sustaining it for a season can be difficult.
“My job here is just to play each game and do what I can. Whether I'm playing them or playing somebody else, my goal is to help my team win.”
Smith will likely begin the 2024-25 season as a right-winger.
He said the challenge of connecting two skaters who have skated on a line together for years is reading their movements quickly.
Chemistry doesn't happen overnight, but Smith said he's been trying to keep a close eye on what Kreider and Zibanejad are doing on the ice, what they're trying to do and what they're thinking. So far, Smith said he thinks the two have a good read on him.
“They're both unbelievable players,” Smith said. “I think their careers speak for themselves. It's fun to play with anybody in this locker room, whether it's those two or anyone else, I'm going to do my best to complement their play.”
After the Penguins missed the playoffs last season, Smith had a long summer in which the 33-year-old recorded 13 goals and 27 assists in 76 games. Just one season prior, Smith had hoisted the Stanley Cup as one of the founding members of the Las Vegas Golden Knights.
On the first day of training camp, he expressed excitement about joining a competitive team like the Rangers.
“I think my role will depend on how I play and it could expand more and more depending on what I bring to the table,” Smith said. “Just trying to perform at my best on the ice and mesh well with the other guys as quickly as possible. We have a lot of new guys so we're trying to add a lot of structure to our team.”
Smith is expected to add to a penalty kill that ranked third on the Rangers' roster last season, and it's become a key part of the Ontario native's game.
Like the Rangers' penalty-keepers, Smith has spent a lot of time on the power play throughout his career and believes that has translated into success shorthanded. In 13 seasons, he has scored 13 shorthanded goals. The Rangers scored eight as a team last season.
“I enjoy playing extra minutes on the penalty kill,” he said. “I definitely think it helps me. I also like being able to create offense on the penalty kill. It was tough last year not getting the amount of minutes I was used to. Hopefully I can get that opportunity here and take advantage of it. Last year when we played the Rangers, they created as much offense as we did on the power play, at least against us. It's exciting to be part of that group and be able to play an offensive-minded role on the penalty kill as well.”
The 13-year NHL veteran isn't the first in his family to walk the hallways of the MSG Training Center.
Brendan Smith spent five seasons in New York and is in his first season with the Dallas Stars, so naturally the two talked about his brother's time with the Rangers, and it was through Brendan that Riley met Kreider.
“He always talked about how the Rangers were a world-class organization and that they not only cared about themselves, but about their families and their day-to-day lives,” Smith said. “Being a professional athlete can be a little difficult at times. He always had great things to say about the organization.”
