When head coach Peter Laviolette rejiggered his top-nine line combinations for Sunday’s match against the Islanders, he kept two-man combinations: wingers Artemi Panarin and Alexis Lafreniere; center and winger Filip Chytil and Kaapo Kakko; and center and winger Vincent Trocheck and Reilly Smith … from eight and nine years ago, when they were linemates in Florida.
“I think knowing him off the ice makes a bigger difference than anything, just having that comfortability and being able to talk to him about whatever it is on the ice,” Trocheck told The Post ahead of Thursday’s Garden match against the Sabres. “That goes a long way.
“It’s been so long since we played on the ice together, I don’t know if you could say that us playing together in 2016 and 2017 makes everything go back to what it was. It’s going to take some time but as I said, knowing him as a person off the ice and being able to talk about things definitely helps.”
Remember the hype when Panarin and Patrick Kane rejoined forces a couple of years ago after forming such a dynamic duo in Chicago? Well, A) it didn’t work at all; and B) there’s none of that hype accompanying this move. So never mind.
Smith has been exactly as advertised since coming to New York from Pittsburgh in a July trade, posting eight points (2-6). He’s diligent, responsible and has flashed a decent amount of skill, skating for 10 games with Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider before shifting to the right with Trocheck and left wing Will Cuylle.
Maybe it’s not Jussi Jokinen-Trocheck-Smith for the 2015-16 Panthers with the line on for 26 goals scored and 10 against with an expected goal percentage of 58.84, but maybe it would amount to more than that if this unit remains intact. The Panthers, coached by Gerard Gallant, won their division with a first line of Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov and Jaromir Jagr.
The Puddy Tats were beaten in the first round by the Islanders, and 22 games into the following season, Gallant was fired, the line was split and the club missed the playoffs.
“When we played together in Florida it was almost instant chemistry,” Smith, who set up Trocheck on Sunday from the slot after stripping Samuel Bolduc of the puck on the forecheck, told The Post. “We were not only going great on the ice but we both were hitting strides in our careers at the same time, we were a similar age and we were having life experiences away from the rink that were comparable.
“So it was definitely a fun time when we started playing together in Florida and kind of having the experience and success we had at the same time. It was pretty special. And our first year in Florida we had a great team, made it to the playoffs when we weren’t really expected to do anything. So I think that learning experience with each other has given us a little bit of comfort in every aspect on the ice and off the ice.”
Smith, who will turn 34 a couple of weeks before the playoffs, was selected 69th overall by Dallas in the 2009 draft. He has previously played for the Stars, the Bruins, the Panthers, the Golden Knights, the Penguins. So he has a fair amount of experience adapting to new situations and new teammates and linemates.
And he agrees with Trocheck that their relationship off the ice is the most important ingredient as they hook up nearly a decade later. They have been a penalty-kill tandem for Laviolette from the start of the season and have not been on for a PPGA in 19:28 of shorthanded duty.
“We’ve always been in a fantasy football league,” Smith said. “I don’t think either one of us has ever won the league, but things like that are a good way to keep in touch with players.
“When you go from organization to organization it’s really difficult to stay in touch with teammates, so things like that go a long way. It’s important.”
Smith arrived in New York with quite the resume, ninth in his draft class in points (521), 11th in assists (306), 13th in goals (215) and 14th in games played (851). Yet substantial career or not, the lad from Mimico believes he has something to prove.
“I think no matter who you are, you have to prove yourself every day. I don’t think there’s a baseline where you can say, ‘Oh, this person has done this much so he can coast,’ you know?” Smith asked rhetorically. “I don’t think that’s the pedigree for a winning team.
“I’m here, I want to help out every single day, I want to improve my game every day and that’s been my mindset from the start. I don’t think anyone would expect anything else from any other person in this locker room.”
