The Wolf Pack will honour their all-time leading scorer who helped lead them to the only AHL Championship.
Another great hockey honour for an Ottawa native and former Senator.
Brad Smyth will have his number 11 retired by the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack later this season. The ceremony will take place Mar. 6, 2027, prior to their game against the Syracuse Crunch.
Smyth was a member of the 2000 Calder Cup Champion Wolf Pack team, leading the team with 23 points (13 g, 10 a) in 23 games during the run.
That Y2K Hartford team is still the only one in franchise history to win an AHL title. The following year, Smyth won the Willie Marshall Award with the Wolf Pack, leading the league in goals with 50. He's also the franchise’s all-time leader in both goals (184) and points (365).
The club announced their plans last week.
“Brad Smyth is an AHL Hall of Famer and one of the greatest players to ever wear a Wolf Pack jersey,” said Erik Hansen, Vice President of Business Operations in a statement on the team's website
“In addition to being a Calder Cup Champion with the Wolf Pack and holding numerous club records, Smyth is a fan favourite, who is beyond deserving of this honour. It’s only fitting that to celebrate 30 seasons of Wolf Pack hockey we raise number 11 to the PeoplesBank Arena rafters.”
Smyth ranks 13th all-time in AHL history in goals with 326 and was named to the AHL Hall of Fame in 2019.
In all, he played 20 professional seasons (with 22 pro teams), five of which had stints in the NHL with the Senators, LA Kings, Nashville Predators, Florida Panthers, and the NY Rangers, where he briefly played on a line with Wayne Gretzky.
After his long pro hockey run, the well-travelled Crash Davis of hockey settled back in his hometown of Ottawa, where hockey continues to be a focus. He's coached AAA and junior hockey, runs local hockey camps and clinics, remains an active member of the Sens alumni, and still plays beer league and pickup hockey with friends several times a week.
He's best known today for providing Senators analysis on TSN 1200 radio in Ottawa.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News
