As the sports drama Moneyball opined, there comes a point in every athlete's life where they are told they can no longer play the game that they love. For some, they're told at the age of 40, when their body can no longer keep up with the stress and pressure of their sport. For some, that age is 18, when their skillset becomes lacklustre compared to their cohort. 

But for Ryerson Rams hockey legend Julian Smith, he was never told he couldn't play the sport he loved at a high level. Instead, he chose education and family in place of a career in professional hockey.

In his own words, he came to a crossroads in his young life and had to make a difficult decision. Now at 93 years old, he's proud of the choices he's made, happily reminiscing about his journey through life in hockey. 

"You come to a fork in the road," Smith said from his home in London, Ont. "Which way do you go? ...I went for education."

Born in the Nutana neighbourhood of Saskatoon, Sask. in 1927, hockey was always a part of his life. At the age of five, his uncle, Jud, bought him a pair of skates and built a makeshift rink in his backyard. At the age of eight, he began playing shinny with some local kids, including future Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Bill "Red" Hay. 

By his own humble admission, he quickly became a pretty good skater in his adolescence, despite spending most of his childhood stumbling across the ice. Of course, it helped that Saskatoon was a hotbed of hockey talent at the time, with Gordie Howe, Vic Lynn, and Harry Watson among the names in the same circles as Smith in his youth. 

By 17, he was playing junior hockey with the Regina Pats of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League, where he would play alongside future NHLer Dunc Fisher. His performance with the Pats, though not astounding, was enough to garner offers from colleges in the United States. Smith's father, however, was adamant that he should go to a Canadian university. 

"I was always gearing myself up to go to university," Smith said. "But, I really didn't want to go and I didn't know what I wanted."  

Reluctantly, he took his father's advice and spent a year at the University of Saskatchewan, where he played with the Huskies to keep himself sharp. Not thrilled with his studies, he left to join the Canadian Officers' Training Corps at Camp Borden near Essa, Ont. and eventually ended up training with the Boston Bruins at the team's training camp in Hershey, Pa. 

While training with the Bruins, an acquaintance from Smith's time at Camp Borden encouraged him to try out for the Québec City Aces of the Québec Senior Hockey League, which would offer him the logical next step in his hockey career. 

"Hockey was sort of burning in my heart at the time," Smith said. "I thought, 'I'm gonna try out for one of these pro teams.'"

With the Aces, Smith was a skilled penalty killer and solid defender, especially when joining forces with teammate Herb Carnegie, who later went on to fight racism as one of the first Black players in professional hockey.  Off the ice in Québec, Smith's situation became more pleasantly complicated when he met the love of his life, Yolande Legaré. They didn't get to spend much time together early on because of Julian's hockey schedule, but the two eventually started a relationship. 

When things got serious, Julian thought it was time for him to go back to school and build a career that would allow him to support a family. He remembers that the decision wasn't easy, but it was certainly the right thing to do. 

"I thought it was serious, as did she," Smith said of his early relationship with Yolande. "So, I [thought that] I better go back to school."

Inspired by his father's career in the publishing industry, he enrolled at Ryerson in their graphic arts and printing management program in 1950. At the time, the polytechnical institute had but 350 students, most of which were in similar programs. Helped by a $200 scholarship, he married Yolande in August, 1951. 

Of course, hockey was still very much in Smith's mind, hence his interest in joining the men's hockey team, which was barely two years old when he joined. Howard Kerr, then-principal of Ryerson (and the person after whom Kerr Hall is named), called and asked him to coach the team, an offer that he gladly accepted.   Though dedicated and hard-working, the team had trouble attracting talent. They didn't have a huge budget and held practices at Varsity Arena early in the morning before the Varsity Blues had the ice for their practices.  

In fact, Smith recalls asking Kerr for a vehicle that he could use to drive the team to and from practices. Kerr promptly instructed Smith to use a maintenance truck, which was then loaded up with all the team's equipment and driven through the busy streets of Toronto. Compared to the simplicity of the athletic programs of yesteryear, Smith is amazed at the level of sophistication in today's U SPORTS hockey programs. 

"We were lucky to have five pucks," Smith said with a laugh. 

Smith truly was a pivotal figure in the growth and development of Ryerson's men's hockey program. He was awarded a Gold Medal in his second year and helped lead the team to a Minor College Hockey League (MCHL) Championship in 1952. 

Alongside coach Norm McClelland, Smith established an exceptional foundation upon which the program could be built, especially in his final year as the team's captain. One of the teams that Smith played on included hotelier Isadore "Izzy" Sharp, who founded Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in 1960 after graduating from Ryerson with a degree in architectural technology. 

After graduating in 1952, Smith got a job at Maclean-Hunter and eventually went on to co-own a small printing company in Québec City, Que. He also worked for years at Lawson Mardon Printing and Packaging before his retirement.  

The impact of university sports continued through his children, as his oldest son Daniel was the Athletic Director at Western University from 2001 to 2004. The majority of his six children were also involved in sports at some point in their lives, including his son Derek, who scored 78 goals in 335 career NHL games between 1975 and 1983. 

Though he was only at Ryerson for two years, Smith remained active in the community well into the new millennium. He was inducted into the Ryerson Rams Hall of Fame in 2001 and even played in an alumni hockey game that same year at the age of 73, where he was honoured with the Appreciation and Achievement Award.  

"I think I was the oldest [one playing]," Smith said, again punctuated by a fatherly laugh. "I think [that's why] they gave me the award!"

Along the way, he coached midget and bantam hockey in London, Ont. and played old-timer hockey with the London Devils and Central Ontario Over 50's. He took the National Coaching Certification Program and obtained his Level IV Hockey Certificate for coaching. 

He remained active in the community with Yolande, who passed away in 2019. True to his character, he spends ample time with his family, which includes 12 grandchildren and seven great-grandchildren. He even sometimes catches a Rams game when they're in London to play against the Mustangs, something he enjoys very much. 

And so, Smith, like many other of his collegiate teammates, was never told he couldn't play the game he loved anymore. He may well have been good enough to continue playing at higher levels. But, at the end of the day, he chose family and education, the latter of which led him to a now-legendary career with the Ryerson Rams.

After almost seven decades since he last laced up the skates for the Rams, he still carries with him the memories of playing university sports. In the purest sense of the word, Julian Smith remains a Ram forever.  

All photos used in this story provided by Julian Smith.

If this story inspires you to recall your own memories of your time as a student-athlete at Ryerson, we would love to hear from you! Please contact Nick Taylor, Director of Development, at nick.taylor@ryerson.ca to share your story.