Brian Smith (ice hockey)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Position | Left Wing |
| Shot | Left |
| Nickname(s) | Smitty |
| Height Weight |
5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) 170 lb (77 kg/12 st 2 lb) |
| Pro clubs | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens (EPHL) Springfield Indians (AHL) Los Angeles Kings (NHL) Phoenix Roadrunners (WHL) Memphis South Stars (CHL) Minnesota North Stars (NHL) Denver Spurs (WHL) SC Bern (Swiss NLA) Houston Aeros (WHA) |
| Nationality |  Canada |
| Born | September 6, 1940 , Ottawa, Ontario, CA |
| Died | August 2, 1995 (aged 54), Ottawa, Ontario, CA |
| Pro career | 1960 – 1973 |
Brian Desmond (Smitty) Smith (September 6, 1940 – August 2, 1995) was a Canadian athlete and sportscaster. Smith was born in Ottawa, Ontario, the son of former professional ice hockey player Des Smith and brother of former professional hockey goaltender Gary Smith. Smith was a professional hockey player from 1960 to 1973. After his career, he was a broadcaster for CJOH-TV in Ottawa, until he was murdered in 1995.
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[edit] Career
Brian played junior hockey for the Brockville Canadiens in 1959-60, making a Memorial Cup appearance in 1960. He began his professional ice hockey career with the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens of the EPHL from 1960 to 1963. He refused to report to the Springfield Indians in 1963 and played the 1963-64 season in Austria,[1] before joining the Indians where he played from 1964 to 1967.
When the NHL expanded in 1967, he was one of the players transferred to the new Los Angeles Kings franchise when they purchased the Indians franchise and its contracts, and he was one of the original Kings' players, playing the 1966-67 season with the Kings. In the following season, he played for the Phoenix Roadrunners of the Western Hockey League and the Memphis South Stars of the CHL. He then returned to the NHL with the Minnesota North Stars in 1968-69, and finished his career with the WHA Houston Aeros in 1972-73.
In 1973, Smith joined Ottawa television station CJOH as the station's 6 p.m. sports anchor, a position he held until his death. He also participated in charitable activities, and especially the Ottawa Boys and Girl Club.
[edit] Death
On August 1, 1995, Smith was shot in CJOH's parking lot, just minutes after the end of the station's 6 p.m. newscast. He was on his way to a charitable fund-raising event of the Children's Wish Foundation. He died about 18 hours later on August 2 in the Ottawa Civic Hospital. The gunman, Jeffrey Arenburg, was an escaped mental patient who had gone to CJOH because he thought the station was broadcasting messages in his head. Smith was not the intended target, but was the first broadcast personality that Arenburg saw and recognized coming out of the building.
His death was a shock to the Ottawa's sports community. The Ottawa Senators honoured Brian with a 'Smitty 18' patch on their jerseys, which they wore for the 1995-96 season. Flags flew at half-mast for a baseball game of the Ottawa Lynx, and a tribute was held at a game of the Ottawa Rough Riders, where players raised their helmets, while the crowd joined in a one-minute cheer.
Arenburg was found to be mentally deficient and was sentenced to a mental institution in 1997. He had previously been sentenced to a mental institution but had never reported. An inquest into Smith's killing recommended there should be more public protection and significant changes to the Mental Health Act in Ontario. The end result, Brian's Law, was passed on June 21, 2000 by the Ontario Legislature.
Smith's widow, Ottawa Citizen journalist Alana Kainz, established the Brian Smith Memorial Scholarship fund in Smith's memory, which provides tuition funds to attend college or university. It is administered by the Ottawa Boys and Girls Club. In 2001, the club renamed its summer camp from Camp Minwassin to Camp Smitty in Smith's honour.[2] CJOH-TV established the Brian Smith Foundation to give disadvantaged children and young adults in the Ottawa region an opportunity to participate in athletics, recreation and education.
[edit] Career statistics
| Regular Season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1960-61 | Montreal-H.O. | EPHL | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1960-61 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1961-62 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 59 | 16 | 15 | 31 | 35 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| 1962-63 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 72 | 24 | 34 | 58 | 40 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1964-65 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 70 | 22 | 12 | 34 | 32 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1965-66 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 69 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| 1966-67 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 68 | 30 | 31 | 61 | 15 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1967-68 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 58 | 10 | 9 | 19 | 33 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1968-69 | Phoenix Roadrunners | WHL | 21 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1968-69 | Memphis South Stars | CHL | 21 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 11 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1968-69 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1969-70 | Denver Spurs | WHL | 60 | 17 | 25 | 42 | 15 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1970-71 | SC Bern | Swiss NLA | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1971-72 | SC Bern | Swiss NLA | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 1972-73 | Houston Aeros | WHA | 48 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| WHA Totals | 48 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| NHL Totals | 67 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 33 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
Source: Brian Smith career statistics. Retrieved on 2008-01-04.
[edit] External links
- Canadian Encyclopedia reprint of Maclean's magazine article on Smith's murder
- Brian Smith (ice hockey)'s career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
- Boys and Girls Club of Ottawa
[edit] References & Notes
- ^ Nepean Minor Hockey Association History. Retrieved on 2008-01-04.
- ^ Camp Smitty History. Retrieved on 2008-01-04.
