On Tuesday afternoon, the New York Rangers swung a trade for defenseman Brendan Smith of the Detroit Red Wings, in exchange for a 2018 second round pick and 2017 third round pick. Brendan is the older brother of current Florida Panthers winger Reilly Smith and is a six-year NHL veteran.
The Rangers were in the running for Kevin Shattenkirk, but ultimately missed out and moved quickly on the pending unrestricted free agent Smith.
OFFICIAL: #NYR acquired defenseman Brendan Smith from DET in exchange for the NYR's own 3rd rd pick in 2017 and OTT's 2nd rd pick in 2018. pic.twitter.com/CG7lZQVjAw
— x – New York Rangers (@NYRangers) February 28, 2017
Smith, 28, was a former 27th overall pick by the Red Wings in the 2007 NHL Draft, who attended the University of Wisconsin and debuted with Detroit in the 2011-12 season. Smith has spent his entire career with the Red Wings and has tallied 15 goals and 52 assists in 291 career games.
This season, Smith has two goals and three assists in 33 games, but provides a strong defensive presence and could partner with someone like Nick Holden or Marc Staal.
Smith was negotiating a contract extension with the Red Wings, but ultimately could not come to terms and was moved quickly to the highest bidder. The Red Wings get great value for a player who does not score much and opens up more playing time for their young defenseman in Ryan Sproul and Xavier Oulett.
On the other hand, the Rangers have acquired a defenseman in Smith, who brings 27 games of playoff experience, veteran leadership, and energy to a slightly older defense in New York. The Rangers will likely seek to re-kindle those extension talks, but ultimately Smith could be poised to hit free agency for the first time in his career.
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