MONTREAL — When Brendan Smith was with the Red Wings for the first five months of the 2016-17 regular season, he didn’t get to see a lot of Rangers rookie defenseman Brady Skjei. But since Smith came over in a Feb. 28 trade and recently spending a good amount of time on a defensive pair with the 23-year-old rookie, he has become a fan.
“I’m actually really impressed,” Smith said Friday morning with his team up in their first-round playoff series with the Canadiens, 3-2, with a chance to close it out and advance with a victory in Game 6 on Saturday night at the Garden.
“Now playing with him, I’m kind of in awe with some of the plays he makes,” Smith said. “He’s wiser than his age. People talk about a young guy in the league making rookie mistakes, and I don’t really see that with him.”
Skjei has elevated his game throughout the season, especially in the playoffs. The highlight was scoring the game-tying goal in Game 5 on Thursday night, driving to the net to finish a rebound off a Rick Nash shot.
“He’s strong defensively, we see his offensive skill, especially [in Game 5],” Smith said. “I’m really impressed with him, and he’s strong on both sides of the ice, and that’s what you need from a D-man.”
Coach Alain Vigneault said since before the series began that the Atlantic Division-winning Canadiens were “highly favored,” though the Rangers finished with just one fewer point during the regular season. Though most pundits had the series as a toss-up, Vigneault said jokingly in French on Friday there was another reason he has repeatedly mentioned it.
“To give you guys something to talk about,” he said, as translated by the friendly members of the French-speaking media.
The Rangers signed 23-year-old free-agent defenseman Alexei Bereglazov to an entry-level deal Friday. Playing for Metallurg Magnitogorsk of the Russia-based KHL this past season, Bereglazov had the most assists (18) and tied for the most points (19) of any defenseman in the league 24 years old or younger.
The Rangers’ power play is 0-for-14 on the series, and with very little time to practice, Vigneault said he is hoping extra work from the coaching staff can find something to help spark them.
“We’re trying to pick up on a couple cues, a couple areas we might be able to jump on,” Vigneault said. “I’m telling myself and we’re telling our group that we’re due. Hopefully [Game 6] will be the time.”