Brad Smith played hockey from a young age despite neither of his parents playing. He started in house leagues and later joined a travel team in a town 50 miles away. Smith made his high school varsity team as a freshman and became an important player for their playoff runs, scoring some key goals. Injuries and losses of friends made his junior and senior years more difficult, but hockey taught him valuable life lessons about teamwork, perseverance, and never giving up. While he likely won't have a career in hockey, he hopes to try out for the Detroit Red Wings and will apply the discipline of hockey to his planned career in medical physics.

1. Hockey
Brad Smith

2. Background
• I spent the majority of
my childhood playing
sports.
• Hockey in the winter,
track in the spring,
baseball in the summer,
golf when the weather
was decent enough.

3. Getting Started
• Neither of my parents • I started in house leagues,
ever played hockey, but eventually went to
however while attending travel hockey in mites
college at LSSU, they fell (age 7-9) in a town 50
in love with the game miles away.
• When I was 3 they put me • After working my way up,
into skates and I never we eventually decided to
looked back move 50 miles away for
high school (Sault Ste
Marie). Mainly for hockey.

4. Developing Fully
• I made the high school team • After my freshman year I
as a freshman, along with my began to grow, getting
best friend. stronger, bigger, and faster.
• Neither of us played much at • My sophomore year was
the start of the year, but highlighted by scoring the
eventually we would both game winning goal in the 6th
become huge portions for overtime of a playoff game,
playoff run. and assisting on another OT
• My first goal of the season game winner from my late
came in the Regional Finals, as teammate who passed last
the game winner. Christmas.
• We then went to the final • My junior year started with
four, losing to GRCC. receiving interest from a
couple of D1 schools, and
added expectation as a
captain.

5. The Struggles
• After rehabbing a blown out knee
in the summer, me and my fellow
seniors embarked on a season
where anything but a
championship was a failure in the
eyes of our peers.
• During the season we lost a
member of our schoolmates in a
4 month span, which saw one of
my best friends die in a car crash.
• We realized that night at hockey
just how important hockey was to
us, and gave us motivation to not
forget her, but to try and win a
championship in her honor. We
fell short.

6. How Hockey Brought Me Along
• The ability to connect
hockey to life.
• Knowing there was
nothing more important
than the family you
develop with your
teammates.
• The ability to conquer
any personal barriers and
never giving up no matter
what the expectations or
pressures are.

7. Is Hockey My Career?
• Odds are most likely • If physics is my path, then I
not, but with an open camp will be able to relate
tryout to the Detroit Red through sports with
Wings upcoming this employers and patients
summer, it is possible that I within the Radiation
could be continuing my Oncology setting I will be
education later in life. working in.
• If the tryout falls through I • Make sure to check the
will take the lessons learned internet and see if I am
throughout the years of playing the NHL or AHL, and
physical and mental come see me play. Find me
discipline of the sport, and and I will get you free
apply them in graduate tickets, even though you
school for medical physics. only know me through this.

8. Element
• My element truly is my
passion, and if I am
fortunate enough to
play it for a living than
that will be how it is.
• If not, then I know no
matter how stressful life
gets, I can always find a
frozen pond in Canada
and get back to the
basics of who I am.