Ryan Smyth Career Biography and Statistics

Bio:
Ryan Smyth was born on February 21, 1976 in Banff, Alberta, Canada. His pre-NHL career included three seasons with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the WHL, where he scored 105 points during the 1993-94 season. Smyth was then drafted by the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers with the sixth overall pick of the 1994 draft. He spent one more year with the Warriors (1994-95) but also played in three games that year for the Oilers.

Smyth joined the Oilers full-time in 1995-96, playing in 48 games but scoring only 11 points. He broke out the following year by scoring 61 points and a career high 39 goals in 82 games. Smyth spent 12 seasons with Edmonton, posting a career high 70 points with the club in 2000-01 and scoring over 50 points eight times. He was traded to the New York Islanders partway through the 2006-07 season when a contract was unable to be negotiated; the move was emotional, as Smyth had been a very popular player in Edmonton. Smyth spent only the remainder of the 2006-07 season with New York before signing a contract with the Colorado Avalanche prior to the 2007-08 season.

A tough, gritty player, Smyth is widely known for his play at the international level, where he has won a total of five gold medals. He has represented Canada at the World Junior Championships, World Cup of Hockey, World Championships, and he is the all-time leader in Olympic games played by a Canadian (60). A 2007 All-Star, Smyth, through 2006-07, has NHL regular season career totals of 564 points, 294 assists, and 270 goals.