Alberts Smits had a rough night as the New York Rangers fell 1-0 to the Columbus Blue Jackets in overtime during the 2026-27 NHL season. Not only was Smits on the ice when the Blue Jackets scored the game-winning goal, but his limited ice time during the crucial stages of the game also raised questions throughout the night.
After the loss, head coach Mike Sullivan addressed the confusion with a bold statement that appeared to shift some of the responsibility away from himself. Instead, Sullivan shifted the responsibility—and blame—to another member of his coaching staff, David Quinn, whom he said was responsible for making the defensive pairings.
“That’s [assistant coach David Quinn’s] call back there. He’s running the defense,” Sullivan commented on Smits’ lack of playing time as of late, via the New York Post.
Smits’ limited outing
The fifth overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft logged 14:46 minutes of ice time during New York’s 1-0 loss to Columbus. Although that was his sixth-most ice time in a game this season (10 games played), his lack of shifts during crucial stages of the game raised questions, as he also logged the fewest minutes among New York’s defensemen.
Mike Sullivan during 2026 Olympics.
Moreover, his total was boosted by the game going to overtime. According to the New York Post, Smits had just five shifts after the second period. Sullivan explained that Smits’ lack of a special-teams role also played a part, as the Rangers had three power-play opportunities in the third period and failed to score on all three.
Smits has yet to score first NHL point
After another offensively quiet performance, Smits remains in search of his first NHL point, having gone scoreless through his first 10 games of his career. Considering how defensive prospects are now entering the league and scoring in bunches, it is certainly a bit deflating for Smits to still be scoreless.
Just like Pavel Dorofeyev made little of his offensive woes, the young Latvian blueliner isn’t stressing over his offensive production, though. “I think the offense is going to come,” Smits stated, via the New York Post. “Just got to take care of the defense first. So that’s what I’m focusing on right now.”
So far, Smits has a minus-one rating on the season and has recorded a negative plus/minus in three straight games. Against the Blue Jackets, he was on the ice defending Zach Werenski’s assist to Kent Johnson on the game-ending play, so the sequence may have given Sullivan—or Quinn—another reason to consider whether Smits can be trusted in similar situations going forward.
Key takeaways
- The New York Rangers (6-3-1) fell 1-0 to the Columbus Blue Jackets (3-3-0) in overtime.
- Mike Sullivan stated assistant coach David Quinn manages defensive pairings and player ice time.
- Alberts Smits recorded 14:46 of ice time and remains scoreless through 10 games.
