Right winger and “hockey genius” Reginald “Hooley” Smith began his career on the ice inconspicuously, as a member of the junior-level Parkdale Canoe Club of the Ontario Hockey League in 1920. Within a year, however, he was a member of the Toronto Granites and, in his first two seasons, he won two Allan Cups, given annually to the senior men’s ice hockey champions in Canada. Next on the docket was the 1924 Winter Olympics and, as a representative of Canada, he played in five games, scored 18 goals, and helped Canada take home the gold medal at the hockey tournament. After being drafted in 1924 by the National Hockey League’s Ottawa Senators, he gained a reputation as an amazingly talented player, being highly skilled in both his offensive and defensive capabilities. He was also known, however, for his cocky attitude and short temper. During the 1927 Stanley Cup finals, he attacked Boston Bruins forward Harry Oliver and a bloody battle ensued. His team won the match and the cup, but Frank Calder, then president of the NHL, suspended Smith for a month at the beginning of the next season.
In need of cash, the Senators sold Smith to the Montreal Maroons, with whom he would play for the next seasons. The total cost of the trade was $22,500, at the time a record sum. Along with Nels Stewart and Babe Siebert he was part of the “S line”, a fearsome forward line that was notorious throughout the NHL for its ruthless effectiveness until 1932. It wasn’t until 1935, however, that his name would be engraved on another Stanley Cup. A year later it was the Maroons who were struggling to survive financially so they sold Smith, by then captain of the team, to the Boston Bruins where he played for one season before being traded again, this time to the New York Americans. He played with them for four seasons, still a first-rate player, but his temper and fights with coach Red Dutton got him suspended for insubordination in 1941 and Smith decided to finally hang up his skates, having just breeched the 200 goal mark. He died in 1963, the last surviving member of the S line, and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972.
Canada