CANADIENS’ PAUL BYRON A PERFECT CANDIDATE FOR MASTERTON TROPHY
I truly believed I was good enough to play in the NHL and my dream was to win the Stanley Cup. I want to stay with that dream.
The Canadiens’ Paul Byron was thrilled to have his wife and two kids in the stands when he reached the 20-goal mark for the first time in his NHL career during last Sunday’s 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators at the Bell Centre.
Byron has given his wife, Sarah Leblond, and their two children — four-year-old daughter Elianna and son Brysen, who is about to turn three — a lot to be proud of since the Canadiens claimed him on waivers from the Calgary Flames before the start of last season.
They were given another reason when Byron was officially announced Thursday morning as the Canadiens’ nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, which goes to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey. The Canadiens’ nominee was voted on by the Montreal chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association.
Byron’s children are too young to fully understand what their father has accomplished since joining the Canadiens, but they are having a lot of fun growing up in Montreal’s crazy hockey environment.
“They love the hockey, they love going to the games,” Byron said after practice Wednesday in Brossard. “My wife brought our son to the game in Ottawa (last Saturday night, when the Canadiens won 4-3 in a shootout during which Byron scored) and got to cheer us on there for the road game. It was pretty cool for him. He loves it so much.”
Byron loved hockey just as much as his son when he was that age, growing up in Ottawa with the best backyard rink in the neighbourhood.
“Just watching hockey every Saturday night with my Dad,” Byron recalled. “He showed me the game and I was just in love with it, mesmerized by it. It’s all I thought about, it’s all I dreamed about doing or playing. He built a rink in our backyard. He had a crease, centre-ice logo, pretty legit rink back there and I just used to play for hours and hours every day, just dreaming about scoring goals and moves I’d do on D-men and stuff like that. It was just something that I spent all my time focusing on. … I didn’t even really care about anything else.”
Byron is a perfect candidate for the Masterton Trophy. When you’re only 5-foot-9 and 160 pounds and you make it to the NHL — not to mention scoring 20 goals after being placed on waivers — perseverance and dedication are two very good words to describe the journey.
Canadiens assistant GM Larry Carrière played a key role in the team’s decision to claim Byron off waivers from Calgary. Carrière spent 20 years with the Buffalo organization and it was the Sabres who selected Byron in the sixth round (179th overall) of the 2007 NHL Draft. Carrière obviously knew Byron’s history and the fact the left-winger was a big goal-scorer in junior, posting 21-11-32 totals in 19 playoff games when the Gatineau Olympiques won the QMJHL’s President’s Trophy in 2008.
Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin rewarded Byron last year with a three-year, US$3.5-million contract that kicked in this season and the forward has become one of the best bargains and most underrated players in the NHL. Byron said the security of a longterm contract helped take a lot of pressure off him after living with one-year deals in the past.
“When an organization, a GM steps up and offers you that kind of stability, it’s a pretty incredible feeling, especially considering where I came from (last) September,” Byron said. “Obviously, a very, very proud moment for me and my family and we were very, very appreciative of it.”
The Canadiens are probably more appreciative of what Byron has given them in return.
“I think I’ll be labelled as
(an underdog) as long as I play hockey,” the 27-year-old Byron said. “When you’re 5-9, 160 pounds, everyone looks at you like you shouldn’t be there, you don’t belong. They don’t understand it. And I’m OK with that because in my mind I’m six-feet, 200 pounds. I don’t let the scale tell me how big I am or how I should play.
“Everything I’ve done in my life has revolved around hockey,” he added. “I don’t even know what I’d do without it. There’s times coming off a couple of injuries where you wonder maybe if the European game might be better suited for me. Less games, better travel schedule, maybe not as much physical contact or physical demand on the body. Those thoughts always come to your mind, but I truly believed I was good enough to play in the NHL and my dream was to win the Stanley Cup. I want to stay with that dream and that goal and that’s something I strive to achieve.”
Now that would really make his family proud — not to mention the entire city of Montreal.