Goalie Gary "Suitcase" Smith: His Wild and Crazy Career
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 27 ก.ย. 2024
- NHL Hockey in the 1970s featured several colorful and oddball goaltenders - and no one personified this slightly unhinged persona more than Vancouver Canucks goalie Gary “Suitcase” Smith.
The happy-go-lucky Smith left his mark wherever he played while often enduring a nightly bombardment of pucks while backstopping horrible franchises. But, Despite his fun-loving persona, the pressures of hockey drove him to a nervous breakdown - and he was once in such a depressive state that he thought he was on the brink of death.
Gary Smith’s wild career was full of meteoric highs and and devastating lows. And while he brought great joy to fans and teammates alike he’d also suffer unspeakable personal tragedy.
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Saw Gary breakout out of his zone many times with the Seals in Montreal. Funny and exciting!
Although I thought Gary Smith was a decent WHA goalie, I always thought he was the shitz in the NHL, though to be fair he did play on some awful teams!
When I was young I saw his mask with all the team logo's of the teams he had played for. I have always liked him. This was a great choice for today's clip.
Thanks Jaimee ... You'll never see masks like that again!
@@ProHockeyAlumni true! It seems unimaginable that someone would put another teams logo on their mask, but based on the information you've provided here suitcase was a breed apart. My favorite part of the clip is where he says "tony esposito changed me from a mediocre goalie to a slightly above mediocre goalie." He seemed like a humble man. I love your channel and this is my favorite episode so far.
Love the old footage, I'll never forget tuning in halfway through a game televised on Radio Canada Le Soiree du Hockey February 10th 1972 Chicago at Montreal and Gary Smith leading the rush to center ice!! Final score Mtl 7 - Chi 1.
During a game for Vancouver where he got pulled, Gary was so incensed he drove home in his equipment, skates et al. Great personality, decent goalie especially for the Jets that final WHA season. Proof to stat obsessed fans that there's more to a player than numbers on a page.
We’ll said #1 🔥
Much more talented goaltender than the stats tell. When he was with the Seals, he made some outstanding games but would still lose because of the poor defense in front of him. He
I'm not buying that story. Not only would it be near impossible to fit into the front seat with the pads and other equipment, but handling the clutch, brake and gas with skates on?
Bullshit story.
@@incumbentvinyl9291 No one's selling it so your safe, but the anecdote came from Mr Smith himself in a 1997 interview. "It's tough to drive in skates." Were his own words. Take it for a bit of fun.
@@1bert719 *you're
Get an education.
Another great video. I loved him talking about Tony Esposito. How Tony helped him. I remember watching him playing against the Leafs back at old Maple Leafs Gardens.
I was a huge fan of Smith's when I was growing up watching the Canucks. That 75 playoffs against the Canadiens was something else. I sort of lost track of Smith's career once he left Vancouver. Being a wee lad, I never even understood why he was traded anyways. Thanks for filling in the blanks, and the trip down memory lane.
I remember back then when he would make a save then lead a charge up the ice with the puck with his players as a way to motivate his team! I never forgot this guy he was fun to watch!
Big star in VAN. I remember the puck kick. Now the junior goalies have to be his size to get a draft look.
I was just thinking about the puck kick, I remember watching it when he gave the puck the boot lol
I love this guy, he was such a pleasure to watch, and I rooted for him no matter what team he went to.
I watched him as a kid in Vancouver... He carried the that team!
loved the video . My first NHL game , he was the goalie . Seals and leafs were playing in Oakland , he played his ass off. Enjoyed watching him everytime i went to seal game.
great work . I love these stories I was just a kid in the 70s and love to here the history .
Back in the mid 70s, when every other kid was pretending he was Tony O or Ken Dryden when he was playing goal, I always wanted to be Gary Smith!
What a guy! He certainly earned the nickname “Suitcase”, but all that travelling must wear a guy down. But Smith rose to the challenge. He’s a Spartan.
I was so excited when Canucks got him and Korab from Black Hawks , still one of favorite NHL players ever .
Imagine one guy’s (Smith) nickname is “Suitcase” , and the other is “King Kong.” Which nickname sounds more dangerous? In today’s hockey, it seems as if nicknames are a thing of the past. All you gotta do nowadays is add a “y” or “er” to the player’s first or last name.
@@ianhowarth2656 Wouldn't get a nickname like Pat " Whitey" Stapleton some wuss would be offended .
Helluva goalie when on his game. Glad to hear he’s doing well in retirement.
Gary was always one of my favorite NHL players. I loved his goaltending style.
Yet another gem Mark. Gary and Brian were fixtures on the Elgin strip in Ottawa throughout the 80's where I'd often connect with them to listen to hockey stories and engage in other shenanigans. Brian's passing was a sad day for the Ottawa community and one of those "I'll always remember where I was when I heard it" moments. Gary was next level hilarious and a helluva talent to have made it to the show in a 6 team league. Thanks for your efforts and please keep them coming!
Great post … thank you! Greatly appreciated!
"I could see the family resemblance from the can." I bet that still burns if she is still alive.
HE IS ONEOF MY IDOLS
Whoa! Great video! Perhaps the one I like the most so far from your channel. Very simply, there was never a dull moment in this goalie's career & you'd never know what the next challenge was going to be. He was no quitter, that's for sure 👍🌟
Thanks very much ... for all of his "antics" he really wanted to win ... old school for sure.
Watching him make a break for the blue line made me remember just what a good puck handler he was and how fast a skater he really was he could really move. Just an FYI the reason why he used to put on so many socks under his skates was because the leather shell on those goalie skates we get quite soft, and if you took a shot to it, you would get one hell of a bruise on your foot or ankle. I would imagine having that many pairs of socks on would train help dissipate the impact and spare your feet. I actually have a big toe that doesn’t bend because I took a shot off the toe and that soft leather just caved right in on it.
we needed more clips of Smith dashing down the ice
I remember Patrick Roy trying it, back in the 90's
He got a penalty, of course. Lol
Wish I still had my old hockey cards.
Loving your videos. Thank you for the effort and knowledge thats put in for us to remember the characters of yesteryear
Go Canucks Go! (Next year)
Thanks for that, Rob ... Love the old time Canucks and have more stories on Vancouver alumni on the schedule.
He was a character and a very good goalie if his mind was in it!
Just discovered your channel, love your stories, look forward to watching all videos.
I saw Gary Smith play many times at the Forum in Los Angeles. In one game, the Kings scored nine goals on Smith. I recall Smith bent parallel to the ice with his head hung low. I felt sorry for him even I was a Kings' fan. He wore the uniform of the Oakland Seals.
"I can see the family resemblance on the can"...very funny, but pack your suitcase! (again). Love Gary Smith.
I have no idea how you were able to secure such obscure video footage, especially some of the WHL games you showed lol. Either way, nice video and very interesting!
I spend an inordinate amount of time searching for unique video -- Thanks for noticing and for watching!
@@ProHockeyAlumni Remarkable. And as far as I'm concerned, ANY footage that includes the great Danny Gallivan is pure gold!
I was thinking the same as the OP. Is the footage you have entire games, individual highlights, or a bit of both?
I know that most of the footage from that era was erased, so the studio would have space for new footage. I wonder how much a brand new Betamax, high quality tape sold for back then?
It's one of the saddest truths that most of that old footage is gone forever.
I would pay a lot to see any Montreal playoff win from back then...sigh.
Cheers from Montreal :)
Nice work. Just one thing: it's Pete Lopresti with in goal for the North Stars between 9:50 and 10:15.
AWESOME dude
It sounds like Smith was one of those guys just good enough to make other teams think, "If we could just get him on our team, we could help him put the final pieces in place!" I suspect oft-traded forwards like Dan Quinn and Mike Sillinger were in that same box.
Good comment ... think you're correct.
5:10 Vintage Dang-It
He seen so many pucks that he had “Goodyear” tattooed on his head! Still, Gary might have had a more productive career if he hadn’t played for so many bad clubs.
The Seals jumped from last to 2nd in the West in 68-69. Smith, Vadnais, and Norm Ferguson were the major contributors. Finley wrecked the promising Seals.
a real shame ... Bill Torrey would have built a championship team over time.
And through it all, including not getting Guy Lafleur, all in all those were great times. Seals fans loved their team. Lots of great memories.
It's interesting to hear him praise Tony Esposito because it goes against a comment of his that appears in the book '67,a great read about the Leafs' last run to the Cup and the disintegration gradually settling in before the great victory. Smith said Esposito was determined to hog the playing time.
You are correct … he was a bit sour about Tony
Was that Marv Albert calling the Hawks-Rangers game around the 5:00 mark? I didn’t know he did hockey games.
Yes, he was a GREAT hockey announcer for NYR
He did all the Ranger games decades ago
@@antonchigurh7227 i recognized the voice instantly from boxing matches in the day with dr ferdie pacheco, lol
The family resemblance with the dog food can...classc!
Such a tragic end. Someone picked him up and travelled to an unknown destination.
Picked who up? Please clarify. Thanks
@@steveharvey2102 last seen by a baggage handler at JFK Airport.
Can someone tell me was that the Great Al Shaver announcing the Jets win???
yes
5:47 - Wilson used to make hockey equipment?! When did they stop doing that?
Jesus Christ , this guy played with almost every bad team in the 70's . Then he went to Washington . Couldn't get any worse
He could have played without out a mask he was that nuts.
7:48 - Drew? It wasn't a lottery, was it? Wasn't it based on seeding in the conference already back then?
9:20 🤣😂🤣😂 that's funny
Plays a 28game season & gets the Vezina 🤣🤣🤣
Back then the Vezina was given to the team, and goalies, with the least goals against.
Around 80-81 the William Jennings trophy replaced the role of the Vezina.
The Vezina then became a trophy that was awarded by voting.
Cheers from Canada
6:58 6 shutouts still a team record? LOL what?
Smith was fun to watch, but Glover was one of the worst coaches in NHL history.
Goalies They can go as far as the red line where on gods green earth do yo get your info how could you make such a faux pas
I remember watching the Habs play the Canucks and Danny Gallivan informed the TV audience it was the first time in NHL history 2 goaltenders who were 6'4 or taller played against each other in NHL history (Dryden & Smith)
In those days, goaltenders were essentially self-taught, with little or no coaching. One can only imagine what a career he would have had with a little bit of guidance - and better teams in front of him.
I agree, Semper ... just look how deep Smith plays in the net ... he thought it would give him more reaction time and had no teaching on cutting down the angle.
Another promising young player that the Leafs gave up on!
I used to have Gary's hockey 🏒 card ...O-Peech-Ee ...Seals card
Wow, it seems was though he played forever! What a great story, and what a great (as usual!) production. Thanks for doing what you do...YOU are the best!!!
Thanks again OG ... Gary seemingly had many careers with his time in the bigs ... a quality person, as well.
Saw him play in the mid-seventies in Vancouver. Back when kids like us bought standing room tix the day of the game.
My favorite hockey player of all time! When he was with Minnesota, he played the Blackhawks in Chicago, I was rooting for Minnesota the whole game, Smitty shut em out 3-0 and a Blackhawk fan punched me in the face at the end of the game, we went 20 rows of brawling!!! My 15 seconds of fame lol
Damn, I love that story! THX!
saw my hometown Flyers vs the Seals as my first NHL game. Suitcase was the starter. The Flyers won 3-2 on goals by Nolet and 2 by Dornhoefer. at one point a guy near me starts yelling, and it was if the Spectrum noise got shut off. This guy yells at Smith, ' Get back in your cage you animal !" ... Smith looked our way and we pointed to the Moron who yelled it. He was good that night and i have never forgotten him.
very interesting ... Thanks!
Considering he was in Philly, he's lucky the fan didn't throw batteries at him! Lol
Looking at clips from the mid seventies, which were probably my favorite NHL era, is so enjoyable. Great video.
This has been such an excellent series for fans like myself who have heard of and maybe read about the all-time very goods of the game; the team hall of fame players (if they made an impact on a team or two); the one-two time All-Star; players who played on numerous teams so they never got traction on one as a mainstay... Suitcase Smith ranks as a few of these accolades... thanks for sharing.
oh Gary's..... they wanna have fun
ooh Gary's..... Gary's just wanna have fun
Love these oldtimer stories!!