Gabe Smith: Size & Grit
Published on August 25, 2025 under Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL)
Moncton Wildcats News Release
Gabe Smith had a memorable Memorial Cup run with the Moncton Wildcats last season.
The 19-year-old centre, beginning his fourth season in the colours of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League defending champions, was second on the team in scoring in the playoffs, with 22 points in 19 games, including the goal that clinched the Q-league championship, and added two goals and two assists in four games at the Memorial Cup tournament in Rimouski.
"He was probably our top forward at the Memorial Cup," remembered Wildcats coach Gardiner MacDougall.
The Wildcats, of course, reached the semi-final of the tournament before falling to the London Knights. But what made the week even more memorable for Smith was the autograph he gave out: he signed his first professional contract, a three-year, entry-level deal with the Utah Mammoth, who had chosen him in the fourth round, 103rd overall, in the 2024 NHL entry draft..
"It was a really big moment," he said of inking the contract. "I was just so excited I wasn't sure it was going to happen before the season ended. I was thankful to get it done."
"We are very pleased to sign Gabe to an entry-level contract," Mammoth general manager Bill Armstrong said in a May 30 media release announcing the signing. "He has earned this deal and we look forward to his continued development,"
So do the Wildcats. Smith's offensive statistics have improved in each of his three seasons with the Cats, including 20 goals and 19 assists for 39 points in 52 regular season games last year. He brings size and grit to the Wildcats lineup.
"He was one of our most improved players last year," said MacDougall. "He'll play a key role for us this year,"
Gabe and his younger brother Gavin, who is battling for a job with the rival Charlottetown Islanders, grew up in the tiny seaside town of St. Andrews (population 2,048), skating on the backyard rink their dad Gareth built. He played in the St. Andrews minor system until the U15 level, when he made the 75 minute drive to Saint John to play with the Kennebecasis Valley Kings. He credits coach Luke Simpson as a major influence. His second year with the Kings, when he scored 21 goals and 44 points in 23 games "was kind of the year when my hockey took off," he said. That's when he thought junior, and perhaps pro hockey might be a possibility, he said.
"Every kid growing up dreams of being a pro hockey player from a young age," said Smith, who grew up as a fan of the Montreal Canadiens. "But for me, it didn't really click into my head until I was a second year bantam (U-15) when I realized I really had a shot at it."
He went to school at Rothesay-Netherwood - playing soccer there for the first season, switching to hockey for the final two years, He was chosen by the Cats in the second round of the 2022 QMJHL draft, 25th overall.
It's been onward and upward ever since for the six-foot-four inch, 208 pounder, who has played 172 career games for the Cats and should pass the 200 game threshold this season.
"This has become kind of a second home for me," he said as he looked forward to a fourth season in the Hub. "Everybody here has done so much for my career, and I'm thankful for everybody."
While he's always been "kind of a bigger kid...I wouldn't say I had one growth spurt," he felt last year he grew into his six-foot-four inch frame.
"A lot of bigger kids are a little bit clumsy and lanky and maybe not super co-ordinated, and that was me growing up," he said. But he said "finding my confidence was the biggest part for me, for sure."
MacDougall helped.
"They let me find my way," he said of the Wildcats coaching staff. "At the start of the year, I wasn't playing the way I wanted to play. They didn't shut me down and lose that confidence. They let me play through it and find my game and find my identity."
"Confidence is doing hard things over and over," MacDougall said. "We moved him to the middle and he seemed to thrive there."
The Wildcats thrived as a team too, of course, steamrolling through the QMJHL. He enjoyed playing for MacDougall last season.
"I like it a lot," he said. "We're both guys that really love hockey. If you put me in a room with somebody who loves hockey like I do, we're going to get along. He's a great motivator, and he knows how to win."
Smith also got positive reinforcement - regularly - from Utah's development coach Nathaniel Brooks.
"I'm really close with him...I definitely wouldn't have had the year I had without him," he said. "Every week, we'd have a lot of meetings about things I can improve and things I can build on," he said.
He had a strong development camp with the Mammoth in Park City, Utah following the draft. He'll head to rookie camp and perhaps then to the team's main camp in mid-September. It's likely he'll return to Moncton to finish his junior career before graduating to the professional ranks next season.
"I'm going to do my best for the team and work as hard as I can. I'm going to do everything I can to hopefully play pro hockey next year."
Article by Bill Hunt
Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League Stories from August 25, 2025
- Friesen Ready for New Western Challenge - Moncton Wildcats
- Gabe Smith: Size & Grit - Moncton Wildcats
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