LOS ANGELES -- Arizona Coyotes goalie Mike Smith wasn't sure he'd even hit the net again, but NHL rivals know him to be a much better shooter and puck-handler than he gave himself credit for Saturday.
Smith stole the show in the Honda NHL Four Line Challenge, the second event of the 2017 Coors Light NHL All-Star Skills Competition, when he scored from 180 feet away into an opening barely the width of the puck.
Smith said he only worried about hitting the net from such a distance.
"I didn't really have a strategy," he said. "I was focused on just hitting the board, but it just kind of curled in at the last second. I couldn't believe it, to be honest with you.
"I was just as shocked as everyone else was. It was pretty fluky, but we'll take it."
The shot was worth 20 points for the Pacific Division, which won the Four Line Challenge with 23 points to one for each of the Metropolitan Division and Central Division. The Atlantic Division did not score.
The Four Line Challenge was a new event in the Skills Competition.
"That was awesome. That was cool," said defenseman Ryan Suter, who got the Central Division's only point by scoring from the near blue line.
What were the odds on Smith's shot?
"I'd say 1 in 20," Suter said. "He can handle the puck pretty darn good. Maybe even lower than that. If you gave him 20 pucks, I'd bet you he could make one or two of them for sure.
"He's got good hands, a good shot for a goalie. He can handle the puck; he's almost better than some defensemen."
Smith is the most recent goalie to score during the regular season. He scored with one second remaining into an empty net for the Coyotes against the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 19, 2013.
Despite that success, Smith put the odds much worse that he'd score in the Four Line Challenge.
"[Given 100 pucks,] I probably wouldn't even hit the net again, let alone slide it into a slot like that," Smith said. "It's a pretty cool moment for sure.
"But I'll stick to stopping the puck and leave the scoring up to my teammates."
The Pacific Division was already ahead in the event after defenseman Brent Burns of the San Jose Sharks found the top corner of the net with a shot from the center line, which was worth three points.
Wayne Simmonds of the Philadelphia Flyers scored from the near blue line for the Metropolitan Division's point.
Bo Horvat of the Vancouver Canucks was the Pacific Division's fourth shooter and yielded his second attempt to Smith, as the rules allowed. Any goalie scoring as the fourth shooter in the event was credited with double points.
Smith said the scoring moment from the far goal line will be something to remember.
"It was pretty cool," Smith said. "The look on Bo Horvat's face when I looked over at him was pretty priceless. I'm sure mine was, too, to see it go in.
"It was something that we'll all remember for a long time. My family was here to witness it so they can believe me. Obviously it was a cool moment of the game."
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