One of my favourite stories about a hockey player burning a bridge in epic fashion comes courtesy of Al Smith.
A veteran goalie who started off in the Maple Leafs system in the pre-expansion era but could not become a regular thanks to names like Terry Sawchuk, Johnny Bower, and Bruce Gamble, he would finally get a shot at full-time NHL duty once the Pittsburgh Penguins claimed him in the 1969 Intra-League Draft - the same one that saw Tony Esposito go from the Montreal Canadiens to the Chicago Blackhawks.
In the Steel City, Smith wrestled the starting job away from an aging Les Binkley and spent two tough seasons with the Pens and one with the Detroit Red Wings before the WHA came calling. With the opportunity to make more money, he made a decision that proved to be a wise one. At the time, the New England Whalers played out of Boston Garden and he gave the team instant stability between the pipes alongside a young 'tender named Bruce Landon. The rest of the team was solid, featuring strong offense from Larry Pleau, Tom Webster, and WHA Rookie of the Year Terry Caffery, and a blue line boasting Rick Ley and local favourite Ted Green.
The first Whalers team finished first in the East Division and once the playoffs started, they were almost unstoppable. They stormed past a surging Ottawa Nationals squad (that was actually playing at Maple Leaf Gardens before becoming the Toronto Toros in 1973-74) and Smith out-dueled Gerry Cheevers and the Cleveland Crusaders before meeting the Winnipeg Jets in the Avco Cup Final. Smith and his teammates took down Bobby Hull's crew in just five games.
For the next two years, Smith continued to thrive with the Whalers and late in the 1974-75 campaign, the Red Wings sent his rights to the Buffalo Sabres, who eventually convinced him to return to the NHL.
FRUSTRATION IN BUFFALO
Now, here is where a few details get murky. Smith did not make his debut with the Sabres until February 4, 1976 against the Los Angeles Kings. This makes one wonder where he was for all that time beforehand, but he won his first four starts with Buffalo. He essentially served as backup to Gerry Desjardins, who was in the midst of a 29-win campaign.
When Desjardins went down with an injury the next year, Smith was not amused by Floyd Smith's choice to go with rookie Don Edwards as the starter. Throughout the 1976-77 season, he had been sparingly and the frustration continued to build until that fateful home game against the Minnesota North Stars on February 13, 1977. After the Star Spangled Banner played, The Bear stepped onto the ice and did a victory lap for the fans before heading to the dressing room and removing his gear. Edwards won in his debut and fellow prospect Bob Sauve got a promotion as Smith waited out the contract and chose to sign once again with the Whalers.
“I thought he was justified,” Sabres stalwart Jim Schoenfeld told the Associated Press at the time. “I think Al was mistreated and deserved a chance to play.” (Source)
THE BEAR RETURNS
The 1977-78 season proved to be arguably the best of Smith's career as he won the Ben Hatskin Trophy as the WHA's Top Goaltender and led the league with a 3.22 goals-against average. Since O-Pee-Chee, who was preparing its last official WHA trading card set, wanted to get as many players on cardboard with their new teams, they had to resort to using an older photo on Smith's card. In fact, it is most likely from the 1974-75 campaign as that was the first year the Whalers wore that style of jersey. Smith also wore a new mask (similar to that of future Colorado Rockies teammate Phil Myre) with the Whalers during his return stint, but it is hard to say exactly when he transitioned into this particular protective gear.
CHILDHOOD CONNECTION
So, what is the personal rationale behind hundreds of words devoted to a relatively common vintage card? Around the age of nine, a school friend of mine happened to have this card and would not trade it to me under any circumstances. Try as I might, I just could not convince him to part ways with it. Later that year, the full 1977-78 O-Pee-Chee WHA set ended up as a gift in my stocking at Christmas, so at least the wait to get one during my early days in the hobby was not a long one.
The funny thing is, that same friend now teaches art to my stepdaughter. Funny how life allows connections to be made like that!
One of the best things about the beloved 1979-80 O-Pee-Chee set is the fact that so many WHA refugees were included as four teams were absorbed into the NHL. Most of the players were relegated to the last 132 cards in the set which were exclusive to the O-Pee-Chee collections and their cards often featured training camp, preseason, or early season shots - most of which were taken by Steve Babineau.
Unfortunately for fans of Smith, we would not get to see him in his new NHL jersey as an older photo was once again used. After this season, Smith only had one more classic era card and it reflected his joining the Rockies for one last year in 1980-81.
No comments:
Post a Comment