If you've only recently become a 67's fan, the name Adam Smyth might not ring a bell. But to fans who've been around about a decade, it's a name they won't soon forget. Asking around the rink will typically get you the same type of response.
KimAnn Hearty-Viau remembers Adam as "tough and hard working. Someone I would want to have my back while on the ice." Another big "Smitty" fan, Tim Coates says "He's probably one of the toughest guys I've seen in the past 10 years. Never backed down and seemed to always be there when the team needed a spark. He was great with the fans... and that's why he was a fan favourite."
Adam was a special kind of player. He was never a top scorer. He was never in any points races. But he was a team player who always worked hard and was there to defend his team mates when they needed it. This was a time where heavyweights were part of every team. Fans and teams alike knew star players were protected by guys like Adam. As he puts it "I don't care who you are, you're going to think twice before you take a run at a star player because you know they have a guy on the bench you're going to have to answer to." But there was, and still is a lot more to Adam than just a scrapper.
"You know, I think a lot of people would be surprised, but we're fairly down to earth guys. I do it on the ice, but I don't go pick fights at a bar or something like that. It's the farthest thing from my mind. Away from the rink, I like to hunt and fish and do things that are relaxing like that. I'm definitely not the same person people would see on the ice."
Adam has good memories of his time in the barberpole jersey. "It was a great experience. I was leaving home at 16 and pretty much going out on my own. We had great billets there. I wasn't just a kid living at the house. I was part of their family. That was one of my favourite things about Ottawa. As far as the team and organization, their plan is for you to blossom as a hockey player, but also off the ice, they bring you in as a boy and they teach you to be a man." he tells me. He credits a lot of his personal growth to Brian Kilrea, "Killer was always respectful and he didn't treat us like kids. We were junior hockey players, but we were always treated like professionals."
In his last year in the OHL, Adam was traded to Owen Sound early on. Despite that bittersweet goodbye, he still praises the legendary Kilrea in how the situation was handled, noting he was even given a choice to where he would like to go. "Honestly, I was disappointed. I'd been away at an NHL camp. I was an overage player at the time. I came back and Killer had made some commitments to the other guys, and it was pretty well set that they were going to be there. We had some discussions leading up to the trade as to where I could go. Owen Sound is what I consider my hometown, and it was a chance to go home and play for a season where my parents could make it out to every game. The biggest thing that kinda made my mind up as to that's the place I wanted to go is my brother Matt was playing there at the time. It was a pretty neat experience, to get to play with him."
Nowadays Adam is married and has a three-year-old daughter named Grace, and a second child on the way. He still plays hockey and is currently a member of the Arizona Sundogs in the Central Hockey League, where he recorded a career high 310 penalty minutes last season. A number, he says, wasn't a goal of his. "Last year it pretty much solely fell on my shoulders. We didn't have a one-two punch as far as enforcing would go. I was pretty much on my own." he says. He points out his intention is never to step on the ice to fight. He is a hockey player first, who happens to have the size to defend his team if need be.
This year, Adam's coaches have made sure he's not the only player able to step up if needed, something Adam is happy about. "You're playing three, four games a week and fighting... it takes its toll. Come January you're in pretty rough shape. You get tired and worn down."
With the game of hockey changing so quickly, enforcers aren't as sought out as they were in times passed. Adam still believes there is a place for them in the game though. "I know there's an argument for it both ways, but my personal opinion is that it's part of the game. It's always been part of the game, and I think if they ever took it right out, you'd see injuries and concussions skyrocket because there would be a lot less respect." he explains. This is an opinion many hockey players and hockey enthusiasts share.
That doesn't change the fact, however, that the enforcer's role is diminishing. Adam would like to see young players who want to be enforcers put a lot more focus on their other skills. His advice is simple; "You can't be a one dimensional player and expect to make it. Definitely be defensively aware. As far as straight up fighting goes, they say it's not there anymore, so you have to work on your other skills. It's the skating, the passing, all that stuff that you definitely have to work on to make sure you have a job, whether you're fighting or not."
The need for players willing to enforce like Adam Smyth may be dwindling fast, but that's not not the only reason 67's fans appreciated him. He is remembered for the hard work and heart he brought to the team every single shift.
Five things you wanted to know, but were afraid to ask...
Q. What song would you consider your life's theme song?
A. Something to be Proud of - Montgomery Gentry.
Q. If you could be on any reality show, which would it be?
A. I'd have to say Big Brother.
Q. What's your favourite smell?
A. Breakfast.
Q. How many bones have you broken?
A. Five.
Q. Do you have a secret talent?
A. I'm not sure if it's a talent, but both my thumbs are double jointed.
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