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One opponent Marlies captain Ben Smith will never have to conquer is stage fright.

Born into a family deeply rooted in the music and theatre scenes — mom Marguerita, a pianist and chamber musician; uncle Peter Oundjian, a musical director of the Toronto Symphony; and cousin Eric Idle, of the iconic Monty Python comedy troupe — Ben has the performance arts in his blood.

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Time and space don’t allow us to fully explore the entire clan’s range of talents, which also includes his father Larry Alan Smith, a noted composer in the U.S., and his three brothers dabbling in everything from the oboe to vocals.

“I’ve been pretty fortunate to be surrounded by a lot of talented people,” Ben told the Chicago Tribune when he invited his dad to ride the open-air team bus during the Blackhawks’ 2014 Stanley Cup parade.

Larry was overwhelmed by the experience, but had the keen mind to record some audio of the crowd noise bouncing off the Windy City’s skyscrapers for use in a future composition. “By watching my parents’ and my brothers’ passion for music, I was able to find my own passion and pursue it,” Ben said.

The pro athlete can play trombone, classical guitar and once sang bass in chorus and chamber choir, but it was hockey that took hold after the family moved from his North Carolina birthplace to Avon, Connecticut.

Fast forward and Ben produced more than 100 NCAA points in four years at Boston College. After a few years making his way through the minors, there was a Cup ring in the centre’s first full year as a Hawk.

He was traded to San Jose and originally came to the Leafs in Feb. 2016 via the James Reimer trade. The valued penalty killer briefly went to the Avalanche as a free agent, but was reclaimed by Toronto on waivers in the early going of the 2016-17 season.

This year, as Ben approached his 30th birthday, the Leafs had a different role in mind: making him the farm team’s spokesman among a veteran core that includes Colin Greening, Chris Mueller, Justin Holl and Vincent LoVerde.

All the movement doesn’t mean the family has lost track of his hockey career.