Nathan Smith (born February 9, 1982) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

player from Sherwood Park, Alberta. He played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

with the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

and the

Minnesota Wild The Minnesota Wild are a professional ice hockey team based in Saint Paul, Minnesota. The Wild competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play their home games at the Xcel Ener ...

Playing career

Smith was a first-round draft pick, drafted 23rd overall in the

2000 NHL Entry Draft The 2000 NHL Entry Draft was the 38th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 24 and 25, 2000 at the Pengrowth Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, following the 2000 NHL Expansion Draft on June 23 for the Columbus Blue Jackets and Minnesota Wild. T ...

by the

. After spending four seasons with the Swift Current Broncos of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

, Smith signed his first professional contract with the Canucks on May 31, 2002. He made his professional debut in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

with the

Manitoba Moose The Manitoba Moose are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and a member of the American Hockey League (AHL). The team plays its home games at Canada Life Centre, the home arena of its parent club, Winnipeg Jets ...

in the 2002-03 season. His time spent in the Vancouver organization was filled with injuries, including a near-career-ending knee injury suffered during his 3rd season. Smith signed as a free agent with the

on July 12, 2007. On April 27, 2008, Smith played in over 13 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins. He also scored his first NHL goal which was later called off. Smith served as captain for the AHL affiliate team, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, and took his team to the Calder Cup finals, which they lost to the Chicago Wolves in game 5 of the finals. On July 10, 2008, Smith signed a one-year deal with the

Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...

. He was assigned to affiliate, the

Lake Erie Monsters The Cleveland Monsters are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). The team began play in 2007 as the Lake Erie Monsters and since 2015 has served as the top affiliate of the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hock ...

of the AHL, for the 2008–09 season, and served as captain before suffering a season-ending knee injury on January 23, 2009. On July 22, 2009, Smith signed a one-year deal with the

. In the 2009–10 season, Smith made his return to the NHL on October 14, 2009, in a 3-2 defeat to the Anaheim Ducks. He played in 9 games with the Wild throughout the season, but primarily played with its AHL affiliate, the Houston Aeros, scoring 37 points in 67 games. On August 6, 2010, Smith left North America and signed a one-year contract with

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team Augsburger Panther of the DEL where he served as team captain. Smith returned to the American Hockey League the following season in 2011–12, signing a one-year contract with the Syracuse Crunch on August 11, 2011. Limited to 18 games, Smith suffered a career-ending concussion at the beginning of the season.

Career statistics

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Nathan 1982 births Augsburger Panther players Canadian ice hockey centres Houston Aeros (1994–2013) players Lake Erie Monsters players Living people Manitoba Moose players Minnesota Wild players National Hockey League first-round draft picks Pittsburgh Penguins players Ice hockey people from Edmonton Swift Current Broncos players Syracuse Crunch players Vancouver Canucks draft picks Vancouver Canucks players Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins players