The Smyth-Mattingly Correlation

A lot of people have asked me to put the deal for Ryan Smyth into a baseball perspective, so here goes.

The Oilers trading Ryan Smyth to the Islanders would have been like the Yankees trading Don Mattingly to the Dodgers.

Broken down scientifically, it goes like this:

To begin, look at it like this. The Yankees and Dodgers had championship history. So do the Islanders and Oilers.

Both men were links to an era just after their respective teams' glory days. Smyth came along in 1994 after the Oilers Cup years and after Gretzky was traded to Los Angeles. Mattingly came a few years after the 1977 and 1978 Bronx Zoo Yankees and after the 1981 strike season.

Both guys were essentially the faces of their franchises through tough, lean years with very little postseason success. Since Mattingly only made the playoffs in his last season, Smyth would be the winner in this race since the Oilers made the finals last year.

Since both came after the dynasty years, Smyth and Mattingly became the one home-grown player that the fans of each team could rally around. It was almost like saying, "As long as we have Donnie or Smitty, things are going to be okay" because they transcended the mediocrity of the franchises. They brought hope when the team was terrible in the way that fans could always wish for one or two players to surround the centerpiece and turn the fortunes around.

Mattingly is still loved by Yankee fans because of how he carried himself with such pride and assurance that made you root for him. Think about it -- even many of the most-hardened Red Sox fans would tell you that they liked and respected Mattingly for the way he went about is business -- especially during the years that Steinbrenner was clearly out of his nut and firing managers and secretaries left and right. In the all of the fracases, with his head held high, Donnie Baseball stood above all of the crap. Well, to Edmonton, Ryan Smyth always carried himself the same, noble way. Smyth is one of those people who "gets it"-- a humble, homegrown kid made good who did his best for the fans and his town hurt, sick, or healthy. Smyth also gets points from the Canadian fans and media for always answering the bell when his nation came calling for international duty; whether it was the World Championships; the World Cup; or, the Olympics. That is why he is referred to as Captain Canada. He is the personification of a proud Canadian boy. And somehow, Kevin Lowe did not want to reward the loyalty Smyth had shown the organization. That is why the trade has kicked the Oilers fan base between the legs much harder than when Chris Pronger let his wife lead him out of town. Ryan Smyth was Their Guy.

Now, according to Newsday, Smyth is on the Island. He arrived last night and was picked up in a limo and met by coach Ted Nolan. He'll practice this morning, have some press availability this noon, and will make his debut tonight as the team takes on St. Louis. We know he is going to be welcomed overwhelmingly. Just wait until he hears the appreciative fans chant his name. Then he will know that he is home. The good old Canadian boy from Alberta who married a girl from Saskatchewan will quickly learn that he is wanted and appreciated.