Now deep into a rebuild which looks to be trending in the right direction, the New York Rangers will have a decision to make on a player who can arguably and, perhaps fairly, be described as perplexing.
Brought to the Big Apple from the Detroit Red Wings on Feb. 28. 2017 in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2017 draft and a 2018 second-round selection, Smith made an initial bright impression in a Rangers jersey.
Bringing some brute force and a dollop of grittiness to the blueline, the defenseman was a reliable presence for the Blueshirts in the 2017 playoffs and he was rewarded for his string of accomplished performances that summer with a four-year contract worth $17.