The day of the trade deadline is a hectic one. Deals are made in a flash. Teams making moves and playing the same day feel the effects harshly.
The Golden Knights added without subtracting for the second straight year. They even got one of their originals back in the fold.
Friday proved to be business as usual for the Knights, as it has been since coming back from the 4 Nations Face-Off break.
Goaltender Ilya Samsonov made 22 saves for his second shutout of the season, and the Knights won their fourth straight game 4-0 over the Pittsburgh Penguins at T-Mobile Arena.
“It was a nice game for us,” Samsonov said. “Shutout, two points and we keep moving forward.”
It was a needed game from Samsonov, who had allowed 13 goals in his past three starts. Frustration was mounting. It showed in practice earlier in the week, with him slamming his stick after giving up a goal or misreading plays during drills.
Coach Bruce Cassidy said he thought his goaltender centered his energy in a proper way.
“He needed a game tonight. We needed to be better in front of him, but he needed one like this tonight,” Cassidy said. “It’s OK to show some emotion during practice. It’s a frustrating position. It’s a lonely position sometimes. As long as you channel it the right way.”
Captain Mark Stone had a goal and two assists, and left wing Tanner Pearson had a goal and an assist for the Knights (38-18-6) in their seventh win in eight games.
The day, however, was about the return of left wing Reilly Smith. The Original Misfit, who played during the Knights’ first six seasons, was acquired in a trade with the New York Rangers on Thursday for left wing Brendan Brisson and a third-round pick.
The Knights traded Smith to the Penguins on June 28, 2023, two weeks removed from winning the Stanley Cup.
Friday was Smith’s 400 game with the Knights, the fifth player in team history to reach that mark, and his 899th in the league.
“How things worked out, (me and my wife) couldn’t be happier,” Smith said Friday morning. “It’s definitely been a whirlwind the last 24 hours, but it’s been a great whirlwind.”
It wasn’t the cleanest of starts for the Knights. They had three power-play chances to blow the game open early, but failed to convert.
The five-on-five game was fine enough. Pearson opened the scoring at 12:58 off a backhand centering pass from Stone to make it 1-0.
Left wing Ivan Barbashev chipped in with his 19th goal of the season, off a cross-ice pass from Stone coming through the neutral zone, for a 2-0 lead at 4:38 of the second.
“The first period wasn’t our best, but in the second and third, we took control of the game and it started with our defense,” Barbashev said.
The Knights put it away with two goals in 54 seconds in the third. Left wing Brandon Saad picked the far corner from the right circle at 2:00, and Stone deked past Pittsburgh goalie Alex Nedeljkovic at 2:54 for the 4-0 final.
The Knights put up four goals on 27 shots to hand the Penguins (24-31-10) their eighth loss in nine games (1-7-1). Pittsburgh was held to four shots in the third period.
It’s been a near-flawless run for the Knights since returning from the 4 Nations Face-Off break, now 5-1 since Feb. 20. Their only blemish was allowing four goals in the third period Feb. 24 against the Los Angeles Kings in a 5-2 loss.
The Knights and Kings will conclude their four-game season series Sunday with the Knights wrapping up their season-long homestand.
Here are three takeaways from the win:
1. Off the plane, on the ice
Smith arrived in Las Vegas at 1:30 a.m. Less than 10 hours later, he was on the ice for morning skate.
The love from the crowd started then. He took the ice to a warm reception from the City National Arena crowd. It got louder when he arrived for warmups and was the first player shown on the jumbotron.
Smith, who took line rushes with center Nicolas Roy and right wing Cole Schwindt, was put in the starting lineup with Stone and center Jack Eichel and met with a rousing ovation.
Fans chanted “Reilly!” on his first power-play shift when he touched the puck.
“It definitely lived up to everything I expected,” Smith said. “Nice to get a win. Myself, just trying to catch up to speed as quickly as possible. Overall, as a game, I think it went pretty well.”
Smith finished with one shot in 14:07 in what was an emotional day.
2. Eichel hits 600
The milestones continue for the Knights’ star center.
Eichel recorded his 55th assist this season, a new career high, in the third period in his 600th NHL game.
Eichel becomes the 12th player from the 2015 draft class to play at least 600 games. Teammate Noah Hanifin leads all members with 740 games.
With 75 points in 61 games, Eichel is closing in on a point per game in his career with 589 points. He’s three points from tying center William Karlsson’s single-season record in the inaugural season.
3. Olofsson out, Schwindt back
Smith skated in place of left wing Victor Olofsson, who is day-to-day with a lower-body injury.
Olofsson skated on the fourth line in Wednesday’s 5-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs and played the entire game.
Schwindt (lower body) returned to the lineup for the first time since Jan. 18. The 23-year-old has seven assists in 39 games in his first season with the Knights.
Contact Danny Webster at dwebster@reviewjournal.com. Follow @DannyWebster21 on X.