| Ben Smith | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | July 11, 1988 Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S. |
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m) |
| Weight | 198 lb (90 kg; 14 st 2 lb) |
| Position | Right wing |
| Shoots | Right |
| DEL team Former teams |
Adler Mannheim Chicago Blackhawks San Jose Sharks Toronto Maple Leafs Colorado Avalanche |
| National team |  United States
|
| NHL Draft | 169th overall, 2008 Chicago Blackhawks |
| Playing career | 2010–present |
Ben Smith (born Benjamin Alexander Smith on July 11, 1988) is an American professional ice hockey player currently playing for Adler Mannheim in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL).
He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Chicago Blackhawks, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Colorado Avalanche.
Playing Career[]
Ben was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks (169th overall) in the 6th round of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. He played four seasons at Boston College.
On October 29, 2010 the Blackhawks recalled him from the AHL's Rockford IceHogs to make his NHL debut in a home game against the Edmonton Oilers.
On April 8, 2011, Ben scored his first NHL goal against Jimmy Howard of the Detroit Red Wings.
On April 15, 2011, he scored 2 goals against the Vancouver Canucks in a 4-3 loss in only his second NHL playoff game.
On April 24, 2011, during Game 6 of the Western Conference quarterfinals, Ben scored the overtime goal on a rebound against the Vancouver Canucks' goaltender, Roberto Luongo to force a Game 7 in Vancouver after the Canucks had previously been leading the series 3-0. The Blackhawks ended up losing Game 7 in overtime.
On June 17, 2013, Ben was called up to play his first Stanley Cup Finals game, a 2-0 loss to the Boston Bruins.
On June 24, 2013, he won the Stanley Cup when the Blackhawks defeated the Boston Bruins in Game 6 of the 2013 Stanley Cup Finals.
On June 27, 2014, the Blackhawks signed Ben to a two-year contract extension, but on March 2, 2015, he was traded by the Blackhawks to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Andrew Desjardins.
Ben scored his first goal with the Sharks the same day in their shutout game against the Montreal Canadiens.
On February 27, 2016, Ben (along with Alex Stalock and a conditional 4th round pick in 2018) were traded by the Sharks to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for James Reimer & Jeremy Morin.
Despite putting up acceptable numbers with the Maple Leafs, Ben was placed on waivers by the team on March 30, 2016. He cleared the following day and was assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the AHL.
Despite being considered to be favourites to win the Calder Cup, the Marlies were eliminated in the third round of the playoffs, with Smith contributing nine points in their fifteen-game run.
On August 16, 2016, Ben signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Colorado Avalanche, worth $675,000 at the NHL level and $150,000 at the AHL level.
Having made the Avalanche opening night roster, he made his debut with Colorado to start the 2016–17 season in a 6–5 victory over the Dallas Stars on October 15, 2016.
Ben would play in four scoreless games for the Avalanche before being placed on waivers and being claimed by the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 24, 2016. He was claimed due to the depth he provided the team on the penalty kill, a position coach Mike Babcock praised him for during his stint the previous season in Toronto.
On May 2, 2017, Ben agreed to a one-year extension to remain with the Maple Leafs. In the 2017–18 season, he won the Calder Cup with the Toronto Marlies, serving as team captain.
On June 15, 2018, he signed with Adler Mannheim of the German DEL.
Career Statistics[]
Regular season and playoffs[]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2006–07 | Boston College | HE | 42 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Boston College | HE | 44 | 25 | 25 | 50 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Boston College | HE | 37 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Boston College | HE | 42 | 16 | 21 | 37 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2010–11 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 63 | 19 | 12 | 31 | 16 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| 2011–12 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 13 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2011–12 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 38 | 15 | 16 | 31 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Rockford IceHogs | AHL | 54 | 27 | 20 | 47 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2012–13 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2013–14 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 75 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 2 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | ||
| 2014–15 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 61 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2014–15 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 19 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | San Jose Sharks | NHL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | San Jose Barracuda | AHL | 14 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 16 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2015–16 | Toronto Marlies | AHL | 5 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 2 | ||
| 2016–17 | Colorado Avalanche | NHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2016–17 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 36 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2017–18 | Toronto Marlies | AHL | 73 | 27 | 32 | 59 | 10 | 20 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 0 | ||
| 2018–19 | Adler Mannheim | DEL | 52 | 11 | 24 | 35 | 6 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 2 | ||
| NHL totals | 237 | 29 | 25 | 54 | 8 | 27 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 2 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for United States
| ||
| Men's ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
| Bronze | 2015 Czech Republic | |
International[]
| Year | Team | Event | Result | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | United States | WC | Template:Brca | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Senior totals | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | ||||
International Play[]
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Competitor for United States
| ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
| Bronze | 2015 Czech Republic | |
Ben represented the United States in the 2015 Men's World Ice Hockey Championship in the Czech Republic where the United States won third place behind Canada & Russia.
Accolades[]
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| College | ||
| All-NCAA All-Tournament Team | 2008, 2010 | |
| NCAA Men's Division I Championship (Boston College) | 2008, 2010 | |
| AHL | ||
| Second All-Star Team | 2018 | |
| Calder Cup (Toronto Marlies) | 2018 | |
| NHL | ||
| Stanley Cup (Chicago Blackhawks) | 2013 | |
| DEL | ||
| Champion (Adler Mannheim) | 2019 | |
Personal Life[]
Ben was born in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and raised in Avon, Connecticut.