Rick Smith

Richard Allan Smith (born June 29, 1948) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played from 1968 until 1981 in the National Hockey League (NHL) and the World Hockey Association (WHA). He won the Stanley Cup in 1970 with the Boston Bruins.

Playing career

After three seasons with the Hamilton red wings Smith was originally drafted by the Boston Bruins in the second round (7th overall) in the 1966 NHL Amateur Draft. He played in Boston from 1968–69 to 1971–72. Boston traded him, along with Reggie Leach and Bob Stewart for Carol Vadnais and Don O'Donoghue in February 1972 to the California Golden Seals of the NHL. He played there until the end of the next season (1972–73) when he left the NHL for the World Hockey Association (WHA) and played for the Minnesota Fighting Saints. In 1975–76 Smith returned to the NHL to play for the St. Louis Blues. He would remain with the Blues until the 1976–77 NHL season when he returned to the Boston Bruins. In 1980 Rick Smith would leave Boston to play one more NHL season split between the Detroit Red Wings (11 games) and the Washington Capitals (40 games). He won the Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins in 1970. Rick Smith was not a scorer but a part of talented teams who worked hard. He provided a balance to a team built around Bobby Orr.

During his time in the WHA Smith would see some great success as he would have back to back career high 38 point seasons in both 1973–74 and 1974–75. This resulted in him being named to the 1974 WHA All-Star Game. As well as getting to represent team Canada in the 1974 summit series appearing in 7 out of the 8 games.

During his second stint with the Bruins, he maintained his reputation as a reliable defenceman, culminating in a career-best 36-point NHL season in 1977–78. Widely regarded as one the steadiest blueliners of his era, Bruins coach Don Cherry frequently hailed him as "a defenseman's defenseman".

Post retirement

After 687 games in the NHL and 200 in the WHA Smith finally retired in 1981, he would then put his full attention on earning his master's degree in computer science. He would up buy 25 acres of property on Buck Lake. Then putting his degree to use to teach University staff how to use computers.

Smith has also shared his career experiences with hockey fans across North America. Travelling with the Cup to Afghanistan to visit Canadian troops in 2007 it was the first time the Cup had been taken to a war zone.

In 2010 he would return to Boston to play in the Bruins Legends Classic outdoor game at Fenway Park.

Awards and achievements

Stanley Cup Champion (1970) Played in the 1974 WHA All-Star Game Represented team Canada as a WHA all star in the 1974 Summit series OHA All-Star Second Team with Hamilton in 1966-67 Named One of the Top 100 Best Bruins Players of all Time

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1965–66 Hamilton Red Wings OHA 47 2 16 18 60 — — — — — 1966–67 Hamilton Red Wings OHA 48 2 17 19 74 — — — — — 1967–68 Hamilton Red Wings OHA 49 5 36 41 123 — — — — — 1968–69 Boston Bruins NHL 48 0 5 5 29 9 0 0 0 6 1968–69 Oklahoma City Blazers CHL 19 5 10 15 37 — — — — — 1969–70 Boston Bruins NHL 69 2 8 10 65 14 1 3 4 17 1970–71 Boston Bruins NHL 67 4 19 23 44 6 0 0 0 0 1971–72 Boston Bruins NHL 61 2 12 14 46 — — — — — 1971–72 California Golden Seals NHL 17 1 4 5 26 — — — — — 1972–73 California Golden Seals NHL 64 9 24 33 77 — — — — — 1973–74 Minnesota Fighting Saints WHA 71 10 28 38 98 11 0 1 1 22 1974–75 Minnesota Fighting Saints WHA 78 9 29 38 112 12 2 7 9 6 1975–76 St. Louis Blues NHL 24 1 7 8 18 3 0 1 1 4 1975–76 Minnesota Fighting Saints WHA 51 1 32 33 50 — — — — — 1976–77 Kansas City Blues CHL 7 1 6 7 11 — — — — — 1976–77 St. Louis Blues NHL 18 0 1 1 6 — — — — — 1976–77 Boston Bruins NHL 46 6 16 22 30 14 0 9 9 14 1977–78 Boston Bruins NHL 79 7 29 36 69 15 1 5 6 18 1978–79 Boston Bruins NHL 65 7 18 25 46 11 0 4 4 12 1979–80 Boston Bruins NHL 78 8 18 26 62 6 1 1 2 2 1980–81 Detroit Red Wings NHL 11 0 2 2 6 — — — — — 1980–81 Washington Capitals NHL 40 5 4 9 36 — — — — — WHA totals 200 20 89 109 260 23 2 8 10 28 NHL totals 687 52 167 219 560 78 3 23 26 73