Before Brendan Smith’s fight against Jamie Oleksiak on January 14, the Rangers hadn’t earned a fighting major since Steven Kampfer traded punches with J.T. Brown on November 2. That’s 29 games without a Ranger dropping the gloves. Four games after Smith and Oleksiak traded knuckles, Smith fought Adrian Kempe in Los Angeles.
Smith’s recent fracases account for nearly half of the Rangers fighting majors this season. The Rangers are one of just four NHL teams with five or fewer fighting majors this season. The only team that has dropped the gloves less is the Carolina Hurricanes.