One of the reasons why the New York Rangers acquired Reilly Smith last offseason was for his championship pedigree and success in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Simply, he’d built a reputation as a big-game player in over 100 postseason contests.
Those attributes were on full display Saturday night in the second round of the playoffs. But the Rangers weren’t the ones benefitting, of course, since they’re at home watching the postseason after failing to make the playoffs for the first time in four seasons.
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Smith was moved to the Vegas Golden Knights ahead of the trade deadline, and he may have just saved their season Saturday. The 34-year-old became the third player in NHL history to score a go-ahead goal in the final second of regulation to lift the Golden Knights to a 4-3 win in Game 3 of the Western Conference Second Round against the Edmonton Oilers.
Had they lost, the Golden Knights would’ve slipped into an 0-3 hole in the best-of-seven series. They lost the first two games at home before Smith’s heroics saved the Golden Knights in Edmonton.
The former Rangers forward scored with 0.4 remaining in regulation. He joined Nazem Kadri of the Colorado Avalanche (0.1 seconds remaining on Aug. 2, 2020), and Jussi Jokinen of the Carolina Hurricanes (0.2 seconds remaining on April 21, 2009) as the only players credited with a game-winning goal in the final second of a playoff game.
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After taking a William Karlsson pass in the slot in the dying seconds, Smith faked a shot, danced around two Oilers and took a bad-angle shot from left wing with goalie Stuart Skinner out to challenge him. This is where Smith — and the Golden Knights — caught a big break. The puck went off the stick off a back-checking Leon Draisaitl and into the net.
The referee originally waved the goal off, but that on-ice decision was quickly reversed.
“It hit the metal bar (in the back of the net),” Smith told TNT. “It came out so fast, and the ref (Garrett Rank) told me the puck didn’t go in.”
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Former Rangers forward Reilly Smith stars again for Golden Knights in postseason
Brad Penner-Imagn Images
One of the original Vegas “Misfits” who helped the Golden Knights reach the 2018 Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season, Smith played six seasons in Sin City and won the Stanley Cup in 2023.
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Smith was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins ahead of the 2023-24 season and then landed with the Rangers this past season. He had 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 58 games with the Rangers before they shipped the pending unrestricted free agent to the Golden Knights.
Back in Vegas, Smith had 11 points (three goals) in 21 games to close out the regular season. He had one goal in these playoffs (eight games) before scoring twice Saturday. Given extra minutes because of an injury sustained by captain Mark Stone, Smith tied the game 2-2 at 16:11 of the first period, helping Vegas wipe out an early 2-0 deficit.
The Golden Knights took the lead on Karlsson’s third playoff goal in the second period, but Edmonton superstar Connor McDavid tied the game with under four minutes to go in regulation when his shot/pass deflected off Vegas defenseman Brayden McNabb at 16:58.
That set the stage for Smith’s heroics. He now has 83 points (29 goals, 54assists) and seven game-winners in 115 Stanley Cup Playoff games. None with the Rangers.