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Billy Smith    

Former Professional Goalie for the NHL

William John Smith, better known as Billy Smith, is a retired professional ice hockey goaltender and is best known for winning four Stanley Cups with the New York Islanders and being the first goalie to be credited with a goal. In 2017 Smith was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.

Smith retired in 1989; he was the last original Islander still on the team. After four years as the Islanders' goaltending coach, he followed longtime Islander general manager Bill Torrey to the expansion Florida Panthers in the same role, serving there until his retirement in 2000. He had spent 30 years at ice level in the NHL, the last 27 of them alongside Torrey with the Islanders (1973-1992) and the Panthers (1992-2000).

The Islanders retired his #31 on February 20, 1993. Later that year, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, the only goalie inducted in the Hall in the 1990s. In 1998, he was ranked number 80 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.

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