EDMONTON -- Edmonton Oilers forward Ryan Smyth is calling it a career after tipping in shots and absorbing spine-jarring jolts standing in front of goalies for 18 NHL seasons. Fernando Valenzuela Jersey . Smyth said Friday his body was still willing, but with his young children getting older, his mind was wandering. "The mental side of the game, I didnt have it at times," Smyth told a news conference at Rexall Place, with his family on hand. "Ive got a wonderful family that I miss out on a lot of their stuff. That (became) a factor. "There comes a time in my life where you have to turn the page." The 38-year-old known for his famous mullet was also a stalwart on Team Canada. He was drafted sixth overall by Edmonton in 1994 and spent most of his 18-season career in Albertas capital. He mixed grit with a scoring touch and became the face of the post-Wayne Gretzky Oilers, leading the team to a Stanley Cup final appearance in 2006. Smyth thanked everyone from former teammates to the Oilers massage therapist in a speech that saw the scrappy forward fight back tears. Sitting beside him at the news conference was Oilers general manager Craig MacTavish. "There are many players that have worn the Edmonton Oilers jersey, but there are no players who wore the jersey that had more passion than Ryan Smyth," MacTavish said. Smyth has 386 goals and 456 assists and 974 penalty minutes in 1,269 games heading into Edmontons Saturday season finale against the visiting Vancouver Canucks. He added 59 points (28-31) and 88 penalty minutes in 93 career playoff games. He also earned the nickname "Captain Canada" for his loyalty to Canadas mens national team. The team is preparing a tribute to the Banff, Alta., native during Saturdays game. Asked what hell miss the most about the game, Smyth said the it will be the journey itself. "Being on the ice surface, the adrenalin, the excitement, obviously your teammates," he said. "Ill for sure miss the guys." What was the highlight, he was asked. "Probably playing a thousand games and coming back and being an Edmonton Oiler." Teammates said he will be remembered as a blue-collar workhorse who made his living with a big stick in front of the net, deflecting and tipping in point shots and passes while taking a hellacious beating. Oilers winger David Perron said he grew up idolizing Smyth. "He was always around the net being greasy and scoring goals that everyone was like, How did that go in? Oh, Ryan Smyth scored again. At the end of the year hed have 30-40 goals," said Perron after practice Friday. Oilers goaltender Ben Scrivens said Smyths trademark goals come from a mix of skill and guts. "Hes always in position but never stops the puck, and it makes it really difficult to see pucks because no matter which way you look it seems like hes there," said Scrivens. "Its a talent he acquired through hard work and just sacrificing his body." Smyth played at least 40 games as an Oiler in 14 of his 18 seasons. He blossomed in his first full season with the team in 1996-97, when he had 61 points (39 goals and 22 assists) in 82 games. Smyth was a steady force up front in Edmonton early in his career. The six-foot-two 191-pounder played a key role in the Oilers 2006 Stanley Cup run. Smyth had 16 points (7-9) in 24 games that post-season as the Oilers dropped a seven-game series to the Carolina Hurricanes. He was shipped to the New York Islanders at the trade deadline during the 2006-07 season. Long-term contract negotiations between Smyths agent, Don Meehan, and Oilers then general manager Kevin Lowe went to the 11th hour but the two sides couldnt reach a deal. With Smyth due to become a free agent that summer, Lowe didnt want to risk losing him for nothing in the off-season. Smyth said goodbye to Edmonton during an emotional news conference at the city airport. He played two seasons with Colorado and two more with Los Angeles before he asked Kings GM Dean Lombardi for a trade in 2011. A deal was finalized in June of that year. He has provided some veteran leadership on a young Oilers squad over his last three seasons. Saturday will be Smyths last chance to set a team record for power-play goals. Smyth and Glenn Anderson have 126 each, one ahead of Gretzky. Internationally, Smyth played at two Winter Games, helping Canada win gold at the Salt Lake City Olympics in 2002. Smyth also won gold at the World Cup of Hockey in 2004 and represented Canada at seven straight world hockey championship during his prime. Cheap MLB Jerseys Authentic . LOUIS -- Julius Randle had 19 points and 15 rebounds, Aaron Harrison finished with 18 points and No. Cheap Dodgers Jerseys Authentic . The Calgary Stampeders announced both moves on Wednesday. Parker played 17 regular season games with the Stampeders in 2013, setting career-highs in catches (21) and yards (217). http://www.cheapdodgersjerseys.com/?tag=cheap-yasiel-puig-jersey . There will be no Down Under four-peat for Djokovic, as the eighth-seeded Swiss slugger Wawrinka outlasted the second seed 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 9-7 at Melbourne Parks Rod Laver Arena in yet another five-set thriller in their burgeoning rivalry.COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Welcome to the Big Ten, Terps. LaQuinton Ross scored 17 of his 20 points in the first half, hitting his first four 3-pointers, to send No. 5 Ohio State to an early lead and a 76-60 victory over Maryland on Wednesday night in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. It was Marylands last appearance in the annual conference matchup -- well, at least as an Atlantic Coast Conference team. Next year, the Terrapins join the Buckeyes in the new 14-team Big Ten. "We didnt talk about it being our last one," coach Mark Turgeon said. "We just talked about Ohio State and obviously we didnt do a good job playing against them. So give them credit." Sam Thompson added 14 points, including four rim-rattling dunks off alley-oop passes, and Lenzelle Smith Jr. had 12. Aaron Craft created havoc on defence and chipped in with 10 points as the Buckeyes (7-0) controlled the game at both ends. "Basketball is basketball," said ex-Xavier guard Dez Wells, who led Maryland with 19 points. "I dont care what conference youre in. That doesnt matter to me." Ohio State blitzed the Terrapins (5-3) on defence -- scoring 25 points off 14 turnovers. The Buckeyes also shot 60 per cent on 3-pointers in the opening half and 52 per cent from the field for the game. The lead never dropped below double digits over the last 24 minutes, and the Buckeyes eased up after going up by 25 points in the second half. Ohio State had struggled shooting in its first four games. But the Buckeyes lit it up for 69 per cent from the field -- the sixth-best mark in school history -- during a 99-64 rout of North Florida on Saturday. "We shot the ball well last game and we wanted to build off it," said Craft, who finished with five steals and six assists. "We just wanted to come out and not have a slow start, come out with our minds right. We were able to do that. Obviously, LLaQuinton helped out a lot coming in and knocking down those early shots. Wholesale Dodgers Jerseys. And that kind of relaxes everybody else and gets them going." The Buckeyes led 43-26 at halftime and never really let the game leave their grasp. Ross was the difference early, making those first four shots from behind the arc. After Maryland became more aware of him on the perimeter, Thompson scored on two high-flying, alley-oop dunks that shook the arena. Behind Ross 12 points, the Buckeyes broke out to an 18-9 lead. The Terrapins regrouped to trade baskets and pull to 27-20 before Thompson had five points and Ross the other three in an 8-0 run. Leading 35-26, Ohio State went on another 8-0 run. On the Terps final possession of the half, Craft dived on the floor and stole the ball in a scrum, then passed it out while on the floor. Thompson got the ball, spun in the lane on a breakaway and then banked in a layup just as the buzzer sounded. "We took the timeout," Ohio State coach Thad Matta said. "We said, Hey, theyre going to take one shot, we can get a little risky here in terms of pushing up our pressure. For him to get down on the floor and flick it up like that, it was just a tremendous play." Maryland made a mini-run in the second half, but Thompson ended that by going high over the rim to stuff in back-to-back passes, one from Shannon Scott and the other from Craft. "Shannon and Craft are so good at forcing steals and getting us out in transition," Thompson said. "They draw so much attention in the open floor that I just do the easy part and I finish. Theyve always put the ball right on the money. All I have to do is just dunk it home." Former Michigan swingman Evan Smotrycz scored 15 points and Charles Mitchell added 12 points and 11 rebounds for Maryland, which had won four in a row after losing two of its first three. ' ' '