Gryba finds out about Contacts honour in unexpected way
Eric Gryba wasn’t surprised that his 2004-05 Saskatoon Contacts team is slated to be honoured by the Saskatoon Sports Hall of Fame.
The Hall announced Wednesday that the Contacts will be one of the 2014 inductees in November.
What did surprise Gryba, now a defenceman for the Ottawa Senators, was the timing — and how he found out.
“I figured eventually we would (get in),” said Gryba, who joined fellow Saskatoonborn NHLers Darcy Kuemper and James Wright for a visit to King George School on Thursday.
“I was caught off guard because I didn’t hear anything until I saw it in the paper.”
The Contacts are the only Saskatoon team to win the Telus Cup, awarded to the national midget triple-A champions.
The Contacts won the Mac’s international tournament in Calgary, finished first in the regular season, went 16-4-1 in the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League playoffs.
They eventually claimed the Telus Cup with a 4-1 victory over the Gatineau Intrepide in the final.
“It was very cool to see that recognition,” said Gryba, who had two goals and 11 points in 57 games for the Sens last season.
“We had a very special team. I still have friends that I played with on that team.”
Gryba and Philadelphia Flyers blue- liner Luke Schenn have since gone on to play in the NHL.
The team also featured the likes of future University of Saskatchewan Huskies’ Kyle Bortis and Derek Hulak.
“We had lots of players that went on and played junior, college, pro,” Gryba said. “Good group of guys, good coaching staff. Hockey was very fun at that time.”
Under the guidance of head coach Jim McIntyre and assistants Darren Evjen and Lauren Shmyr, Gryba learned the importance of juggling hockey and school work.
He then played in the NCAA with Boston College before embarking on his pro career.
“That was probably the first time I’ve ever been handed any adversity and pressure at the same time,” he said. “That prepared me for junior hockey and onto the collegiate levels.”