Reilly Smith is entering the final season of his current contract which comes in at a 5M AAV. The sentiment among some who cover the team is that he wasn't enamored with being traded from Vegas. After a decent start injuries, and perhaps a desire to be in Vegas, saw his production drop to the point where he is a candidate for a trade.

It might be anecdotal but in his first 13 games as a Penguin he had six goals and six assists. He then joined Vegas for their White House visit on November 13th. Post visit he only had seven more goals and 21 assists in the following 63 games. His production dropped as the year went on regardless of the reason and it hurt the team.

In preparation for both free agency and a potential trade it appears Smith is changing agents.

#LetsGoPens F Reilly Smith has changed agents and is now represented by @CAAHockey

32 y/o entering the final year of his contract at a $5M AAV, had 40 points in 76 GP last season. @PuckPediahttps://t.co/SFt3QrWICh

— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) June 23, 2024

If the Penguins are looking to take a serious swing at altering their lineup then they will likely have to shed a player like Reilly Smith. A player who I thought made sense to acquire at the price point they acquired him for. It didn't work. It happens. Time to move on. With the extra 5M the Penguins would be able to gain some flexibility. One example of using this cap space flexibility would be trading for a player like Patrick Laine. A player who has a high cap hit, but cost to acquire would be lower than the potential value of the player.

Another dynamic of Reilly Smith's expiring contract is the no trade list for him drops by two teams for the 2024-25 season. In 2022-23 it was 12 teams, in 2023-24 it was ten teams, and now in 2024-25 it is down to eight teams. This gives the Penguins a little more flexibility on how they handle any potential trades.

I think once July 1st hits and the NHL season's calendar flips to 2024-25 we might see some movement on the Reilly Smith front. I'll be a little surprised if he is on the opening night roster in October. This feels like a situation where it would be best for both sides to move on.

Thanks for reading!

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