The London Knights remember one of their own.
Former OHL and NHL defenceman Greg Smyth, who played junior hockey for the Knights, died Friday of cancer in St. John's, NL. He was 51.
Smyth played for the Knights from 1983 to 1986, scoring a total of 23 goals and 79 assists in regular season play, plus four goals and four assists in the post-season.
He was best known as an enforcer, and he amassed 637 regular-season penalty minutes with the Knights, plus 79 penalty minutes during the playoff action.
Knights owner, president and head coach Dale Hunter recalls Smyth as a fierce competitor.
"It is with tremendous sorrow to hear of Greg's passing," Hunter says in a statement. "Having the privilege of playing against Greg in the NHL and having him as a representative of the Knights, he will truly be missed."
He was drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft and played portions of the 1986-87 and 1987-88 seasons for the Flyers under Mike Keenan. One of his fights is immortalised on YouTube when he fights with and tosses a water bottle at Kevin McClelland of the Edmonton Oilers.
He also played NHL games for the Quebec Nordiques, Calgary Flames, Florida Panthers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings. He retired as a player in 2000. He also served as an assistant coach for one season with the Leafs' AHL affiliate in St. John's.
According to the Knights, the London Free Press named Smyth as one of the top-50 Knights of all time.
