Throughout his career, Ryan Smyth was known as a heart-and-soul kind of player. His tenacity led to success in the WHL and NHL, but he also had an impressive international hockey career.
Earlier today, it was announced that Smyth will be one of this year’s inductees into the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Hall of Fame.
Smyth first represented Canada at the 1995 World Juniors in Red Deer. He helped the team to a perfect 7-0 record and a gold medal finish.
Smyth played for Canada at the IIHF Worlds every year from 1999 to 2005. He helped the team win gold in 2003 and 2004. Smyth also represented Canada in the 2002 and 2006 Olympics, winning gold in Salt Lake in 2002. He also won gold as part of Team Canada at the 2004 World Cup of Hockey. His last international appearance was at the 2010 Worlds.
For his dedication to Canadian hockey, he became known as “Captain Canada.” In fact, Smyth has served as captain for Canada at the World Hockey Championship on more occasions than anyone else. He has also appeared in more games at the tournament than any other Canadian with 61.
Smyth was drafted by the Warriors in the second round of the 1991 WHL Bantam Draft. He played in 188 regular season games, scoring 110 goals and 114 assists for 224 points. His number 28 was retired by the Warriors in 2015. He was inducted into the Warriors & Legends Hall of Fame in 2017.
Smyth went on to the NHL, playing for the Edmonton Oilers, New York Islanders, Colorado Avalanche, and Los Angeles Kings. He scored 386 goals, 456 assists, and 842 points in 1,270 NHL games. He retired at the end of the 2013-14 season.
Smyth will be inducted into IIHF Hall of Fame alongside fellow players Mathias Seger (Switzerland), Kimmo Timonen (Finland), Mark Streit (Switzerland), and Alexei Yashin (Russia). The induction ceremony will be held on May 24 in Switzerland, coinciding with the conclusion of the 2020 Worlds.
