Ryan Smyth, Canadian ice hockey player
Ryan Alexander Borden Smyth (born February 21, 1976) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger who played most of his career for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was especially known for playing in the style of a power forward. Smyth announced his retirement on April 11, 2014, after 19 seasons in the NHL. He is currently one of the owners of the AJHL Spruce Grove Saints.
During his junior career, Ryan Smyth spent three years with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League (WHL), scoring 105 points during the 1993–94 season. Smyth was then drafted 6th overall in the 1994 NHL Entry Draft by the Edmonton Oilers. That year he played only three games for the Oilers, as he stayed for the majority of the year in Moose Jaw. He spent 12 seasons with Edmonton before being traded to the New York Islanders in 2007 due to failed contract negotiations. Becoming an unrestricted free agent in the subsequent off-season, he signed a five-year contract with the Colorado Avalanche. After two seasons with the team, he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings in July 2009. On June 26, 2011, he was re-acquired by the Edmonton Oilers for Colin Fraser and a seventh round pick in 2012.
Smyth has represented Canada in international competition on numerous occasions. He has won gold medals at the 1995 World Junior Championship, 2002 Winter Olympics, 2003 and 2004 World Championships, and 2004 World Cup. Having served as captain of Canada's World Championship team for a team record six years (2001–05 and 2010), he has earned the nickname "Captain Canada." Smyth is also Canada's all-time leader in games played at the tournament. He played a record 90 games for Hockey Canada while becoming the only player in hockey history to win gold in all of Olympics, World Cup, World Championships, World Juniors, and Spengler Cup. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2020.