One year ago today, the Vancouver Canucks were in a much different spot from where they are now. While they are nearly a month into the off-season this year, last year, they had just completed one of the most impressive postseason comebacks in franchise history. May 8, 2025, marks one year since the Canucks stole Game 1 against the Edmonton Oilers after climbing back from a 4–1 deficit. 

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The game started poorly for the Canucks, who found themselves down 2–0 early on thanks to first-period goals from Zach Hyman and Mattias Ekholm. While Dakota Joshua cut the Edmonton lead by one less than a minute into the second period, another tally by Hyman and one from Cody Ceci gave the Oilers a 4–1 lead with a little less than half of the game over. 

From a Canucks standpoint, things looked bleak. However, something about the energy in the building made it feel like Vancouver wasn’t quite down and out. When Elias Lindholm scored to shorten Edmonton’s lead to 4–2, the team could have easily rolled over and called it a night. However, halfway through the third period, J.T. Miller found the back of the net, bringing the deficit to 4–3. 

With every goal that Vancouver scored, the crowd grew louder and the towels waved faster. By the time Nikita Zadorov’s blast from the blueline flew past Stuart Skinner, Rogers Arena was so loud that you could barely hear yourself think. All of a sudden, Edmonton’s 4–1 lead had been whittled down to a 4–4 tie. 

Fans didn’t have to wait long for Vancouver to seize the lead for the first time in the series. Less than a minute after Zadorov’s tying goal, Conor Garland advanced on the Oilers’ net and faked a shot before sliding the puck into the net. Just like that, the Canucks were the team in control of the series. 

Even though the series didn’t end the way the team or the fans would have wanted it to, the Canucks should still be proud of the effort they exhibited this time last year. Who knows — maybe they’ll be in the same place they were in 2024 come 2026. 

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The Pittsburgh Penguins finished with the ninth-worst record in the NHL and were slated to be drafted 9th overall at the 2025 Draft, but dropped two spots after the New York Islanders and Utah Hockey Club moved up. 

Interestingly, 2025 will mark the second time in franchise history that Pittsburgh has selected 11th overall. For those wondering when the first time was, we have to go back to the club's initial draft in 1967, where the Penguins had two picks, Steve Rexe (second overall) and Bob Smith (11th overall). 

Out of the 18 picks in the 1967 Amateur Draft, only three made it to the NHL, including Serge Bernier (Philadelphia Flyers - 5th overall), Bob Kelly (Toronto Maple Leafs - 16th overall), and Al Karlander (Detroit Red Wings - 17th overall). 

Ultimately, this leads us back to Smith. Who was he, and how far did he make it in professional hockey? Let's dig into the numbers and find out what happened to the only player the Penguins have ever drafted at 11th overall.

Who is Bob Smith, the 11th overall pick in the 1967 Amateur Draft?

Smith was born in Sault St. Marie, Ontario, on Dec. 1, 1946. As a local kid, he played junior hockey with the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds in the NOJHL from 1963 to 1967. 

He had 27 points in 19 games as a rookie, almost tripling his production as an 18-year-old for the 1964-65 season, thanks to 44 goals and 44 assists, which netted him 88 points. 

During his third campaign, Smith outperformed his previous totals by two, scoring 46 goals and collecting 46 assists for 92 points in 40 games. Moreover, he set a career high in penalty minutes that season, sitting in the box for 50.

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Heading into his final junior season, Smith cracked 100 points for the only time, scoring 48 goals and 52 assists to reach 100 points. 

The Penguins saw something in Smith and drafted him as the 11th overall pick at the 1967 Amateur Draft on June 7, 1967. 

However, Smith never made it to the NHL. Instead, he played his entire professional career in the IHL with the Muskegon Mohawks from 1967 to 1972, winning the Turner Cup in 1968.

As a 21-year-old, Smith made his IHL debut in 1967 and scored 26 goals and 60 points. He followed that up with 38 goals and 82 points in his second season. Meanwhile, he played just three games in 1968-69 for the Amarillo Wranglers in the CenHL, registering no points. 

Unfortunately, Smith didn't play much of the 1969-70 season, scoring a point-per-game with seven goals and six assists in just 13 games. Yet, he bounced back with another 28-goal season the following year to finish the 1970-71 campaign with 67 points.

Finally, Smith's professional career ended following the 1971-72 season, during which he tallied 33 goals and a personal best 84 points in 61 games while collecting only nine penalty minutes. 

Overall, Smith averaged 2.22 points-per-game in junior hockey, thanks to 152 goals and 155 assists for 307 points in 138 games, while his professional totals were just as impressive at 1.10 points-per-game, with 132 goals, 174 assists, and 306 points in 277 games.