Bryan Anthony Smolinski (born December 27, 1971) is an American former professional ice hockey center. The Boston Bruins drafted him 21st overall in 1990. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, New York Islanders, Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators, Chicago Blackhawks, Vancouver Canucks and Montreal Canadiens. He had also previously played with the Port Huron Icehawks of the International Hockey League (IHL).
| Bryan Smolinski | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Smolinski in 2007 | |||
| Born |
December 27, 1971 Toledo, Ohio, U.S. | ||
| Height | 6 ft 1 in (185 cm) | ||
| Weight | 205 lb (93 kg; 14 st 9 lb) | ||
| Position | Center | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Boston Bruins Pittsburgh Penguins New York Islanders Los Angeles Kings Ottawa Senators Chicago Blackhawks Vancouver Canucks Montreal Canadiens | ||
| National team |
 United States | ||
| NHL draft |
21st overall, 1990 Boston Bruins | ||
| Playing career | 1992–2010 | ||
Playing career
editDrafted
editSmolinski grew up in Genoa, Ohio and graduated from Cardinal Stritch High School in Oregon, Ohio. He played junior hockey for the Stratford Cullitons and played college hockey for the Michigan State Spartans. After his freshman year, the Boston Bruins drafted him in the first round (21st overall) in the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. Smolinski completed a four-year tenure with the Spartans before joining the Bruins for the end of the 1992–93 season.
National Hockey League
editIn his rookie campaign of 1993–94 Smolinski tallied 31 goals and 51 points. After a 31-point season in the shortened 1994–95 campaign, Smolinski was traded in the summer of 1995 alongside Glen Murray to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Kevin Stevens and Shawn McEachern. In his only season with the Penguins in 1995–96, he scored a career-high 40 assists and 64 points. However, Smolinski and the Penguins could not agree on a new contract in the off-season and he sat out the start of the next season, playing for the Detroit Vipers of the IHL. In November 1996, general manager Mike Milbury of the New York Islanders traded defenseman Darius Kasparaitis and rookie Andreas Johansson for the rights to negotiate a contract with Smolinski.
Smolinski played three seasons for the Islanders before being traded in June 1999 as part of an eight-player deal that saw him, Žigmund Pálffy, goaltender Marcel Cousineau, and fourth-round selection previously acquired from the New Jersey Devils (Daniel Johansson) traded to the Los Angeles Kings for Olli Jokinen, Josh Green, Mathieu Biron, and a first-round selection (Taylor Pyatt). Smolinski played four seasons for the Kings, before being traded to the Ottawa Senators at the trade deadline for defense prospect Tim Gleason on March 11, 2003.[1]
During the 2004–05 NHL lockout, Smolinski was an assistant hockey coach at Cranbrook Kingswood before briefly playing for the Motor City Mechanics of the United Hockey League (UHL). Returning to the Senators for the 2005–06 season, he was traded in the subsequent off-season on July 9, 2006, to the Chicago Blackhawks in a three-way deal with the Senators and San Jose Sharks.[2] Smolinski started the 2006–07 season with the Blackhawks but was later traded prior to the trade deadline to the Vancouver Canucks on February 26, 2007, for a conditional second round draft pick.[3]
Becoming a free agent in the 2007 off-season, Smolinski signed a one-year contract with the Montreal Canadiens on July 2, 2007.[4] On October 22, Smolinski played in his 1,000th career game, against the Bruins.[5]
After the NHL
editAfter his stint with the Montreal Canadiens, Smolinski began an assistant coaching job for a Michigan high school team, Birmingham Unified. With Smolinski's help, the team became District Champions for the first time in four years.
Without an NHL job, on February 24, 2009, Smolinski signed a deal with the Port Huron Icehawks of the IHL.[6] On April 30, 2009, Smolinski signed a deal with the Milwaukee Admirals of the AHL.[7] He is currently working with the National Hockey League as a regional director in their Learn To Play (LTP) program. In 2015, he was inducted into the National Polish-American Sports Hall of Fame.
Smolinski also referees high school hockey in Michigan.[8]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1987–88 | Detroit Little Caesars | MNHL | 80 | 43 | 77 | 120 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Stratford Cullitons | MWJHL | 46 | 32 | 62 | 94 | 132 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Michigan State University | CCHA | 39 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 45 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | Michigan State University | CCHA | 35 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1991–92 | Michigan State University | CCHA | 44 | 30 | 35 | 65 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Michigan State University | CCHA | 40 | 31 | 37 | 68 | 91 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 9 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1993–94 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 83 | 31 | 20 | 51 | 82 | 13 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 4 | ||
| 1994–95 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 44 | 18 | 13 | 31 | 31 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1995–96 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 81 | 24 | 40 | 64 | 69 | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 10 | ||
| 1996–97 | Detroit Vipers | IHL | 6 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | New York Islanders | NHL | 64 | 28 | 28 | 56 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | New York Islanders | NHL | 81 | 13 | 30 | 43 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | New York Islanders | NHL | 82 | 16 | 24 | 40 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 79 | 20 | 36 | 56 | 48 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2000–01 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 78 | 27 | 32 | 59 | 40 | 13 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 14 | ||
| 2001–02 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 80 | 13 | 25 | 38 | 56 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 2002–03 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 58 | 18 | 20 | 38 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 10 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 18 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 6 | ||
| 2003–04 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 80 | 19 | 27 | 46 | 49 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | ||
| 2004–05 | Motor City Mechanics | UHL | 21 | 9 | 23 | 32 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 81 | 17 | 31 | 48 | 46 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 2006–07 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 62 | 14 | 23 | 37 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 19 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | ||
| 2007–08 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 64 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 20 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | ||
| 2008–09 | Port Huron Icehawks | IHL | 21 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 9 | ||
| 2008–09 | Milwaukee Admirals | AHL | — | — | — | — | — | 7 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 6 | ||
| 2009–10 | Flint Generals | IHL | 48 | 24 | 25 | 49 | 42 | 12 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 4 | ||
| NHL totals | 1,055 | 274 | 377 | 651 | 606 | 123 | 23 | 29 | 52 | 60 | ||||
International
edit| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | United States | WJC | 7 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 8 | |
| 1996 | United States | WCH | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | |
| 1998 | United States | WC | 6 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 | |
| 1999 | United States | WC | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 8 | |
| 2004 | United States | WCH | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Senior totals | 21 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 18 | |||
See also
editChampionships
edit2016 Michigan Amateur Hockey Association 30+ Recreational Division State Champions
Awards and honors
edit| Award | Year |
|---|---|
| All-CCHA First Team | 1992–93 |
| AHCA West First-Team All-American | 1992–93 |
References
edit- ^ "Avs acquire Battaglia; Kings trade Smolinski". ESPN.com. 2003-03-11. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Blackhawks obtain Sens' Havlat in three team deal". ESPN.com. 2006-07-09. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Canucks get Smolinski, Sopel in separate trades". ESPN.com. 2007-02-26. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Habs ink Smolinski to one-year deal". canadiens.nhl.com. 2007-07-02. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Milestone night for Smolinski". canadiens.nhl.com. 2007-10-22. Archived from the original on 2009-05-31. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Icehawks sign NHL center". ihl-hockey.com. 2009-02-24. Archived from the original on 2009-02-26. Retrieved 2009-02-26.
- ^ "Admirals Sign Smolinski to PTO". milwaukeeadmirals.com. 2009-04-30. Archived from the original on May 6, 2009. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ "Retired NHL-er Back on Ice to Answer Call - By Making Them". Michigan High School Athletic Association. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database