"5 minutes with Ryan O'Byrne"

[HABLORD]

5 minutes with... Ryan O'Byrne
Canadiens’ third-round draft pick reflects on first pro camp

(10/07/2003)


After the Canadiens' Development Camp, the next stop for Ryan O'Byrne will be Cornell University.
MONTREAL -- Sporting a nasty stitched-up gash and a red, purple, and yellow welt below his right eye, 18-year-old Ryan O’Byrne looks very much the type of defenseman the Canadiens will be counting on as a cornerstone down the road. “A high stick,” he says with a shrug. “The second day of camp. Makes for a good souvenir, I guess.”

One of 22 players participating in Montreal’s 2003 Development Camp, it would not be a stretch to picture O’Byrne sporting the bleu-blanc-rouge at the Bell Centre several years from now. Already, he wears it well on the ice of Martin Lapointe Arena, where since July 2 the gathered Canadiens’ prospects have been learning various skills and elements of the professional way of life under the watchful gaze of the Montreal coaching staff.

Already an imposing presence at 6-foot-5, O’Byrne will likely add mass to his 210-pound frame in his coming seasons at Cornell, the Ivy League university he’ll be attending starting in the fall. After being named the Canadiens’ surprise third-round pick (their fourth selection overall and the 79th player taken) in last month’s NHL Entry Draft, O’Byrne’s evolution at Cornell will follow his time spent with the little-known Nanaimo Clippers of the BCHL. In 2002-2003, the Victoria, BC native made his presence certainly known with the club, notching 15 points (five goals, ten assists) in 41 games to go along with 118 penalty minutes.

With the Montreal summer camp winding down, O’Byrne took five minutes out of a busy itinerary to sit down with canadiens.com.

canadiens.com: How pumped are you to be here right now?

Ryan O’Byrne: It’s been unbelievable. It’s been a great experience so far; everyone’s treated me just unbelievably well. There’s some great hockey players here.

canadiens.com: Were you surprised you were picked where you were at the draft?

RO: Yeah, for sure. I was told by a family advisor that I’d probably go in the fourth or fifth round, and that the third round was pretty optimistic. So getting picked in the third round, I was definitely pretty excited about that.

canadiens.com: What’s been the most interesting thing you’ve learned at camp so far?

RO: I think the most interesting thing has been how to be a professional. How hard you have to work to get to the next level – the work ethic you need and what it takes, overall.

canadiens.com: You guys have had some interesting seminars lined up. Which one have you enjoyed the most?

RO: The best one has probably been about being a pro, by Bob Gainey. Once again, it was just a lot of stuff about what it takes to get to the next level. He told us we all have the skill to get there; it’s just about which of us take care the most and work the hardest.

canadiens.com: How tough is it right now knowing that while you’ve taken a major step toward playing in the NHL, you still probably have a couple of years of development ahead of you, at least, before cracking the pro roster?

RO: I think it’s part of the game. You know, getting drafted is just the first step, then the next two years or so you’ve got to work hard and go to college, and I’m looking forward to that.

canadiens.com: Does it ever blow your mind when you stop and realize that you’re just 18 years old, yet you’re now a part of the Montreal Canadiens’ organization – a player within the system of a professional sports team?

RO: Oh, for sure. You know, I played in the BCHL and you don’t get much exposure out there. So to come to the Montreal Canadiens’ camp and see all the management in the dressing room and everything, it’s been quite the experience.

canadiens.com: How are you enjoying Montreal, so far?

RO: It’s awesome. The town’s great. I’ve eaten in some amazing restaurants and I’ve really enjoyed myself here. The food’s been awesome. Much better than in BC (laughs).

canadiens.com: So far during camp you guys have gone to a Peter Gabriel concert, a WWE Raw wrestling extravaganza, and an Expos’ baseball game. What’s been the best?

RO: Oh, I would say the WWE has probably been the most entertaining (laughs).

canadiens.com: You’re 6-foot-5. Think you could take any of those wrestlers?

RO: (laughs) Ah, possibly in a couple of years I could take ‘em, no problem.

J.S. Trzcienski is the Site Manager for canadiens.com.





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Molson Canada

An interesting read, sounds like a tough kid.

I think our D will look ALOT better very soon! ;D GO HABS GO!!!!!!!

[blaise]

I like the fact that O'Byrne will be going to Cornell, which has an excellent hockey program. Chris Higgins played played against them for 2 years and he can tell you how much stronger they were than Yale's team.

[MPLABBE]

I really like what I am hearing about big Oby...I really think we have a sleeper on our hands.


It will be interesting to see how he develops.

[montreal]

It's great that he's going to Cornell, who might be the top team in the ECAC. (if they get their goalie back, Yotes might sign Leneavu sp?) Anyway, I get some Cornell games throughout the season, so I'll keep a look out for when he's on tv.

[MPLABBE]

montreal, the Yotes signed Leneveu...

[Thomas]

Getting very excited about this prospect, he seems like a real tough kid. At draft day I wasnt very pleased with the 2nd and 3rd rounds, but the recent articles with Urqhart and O'Byrne has resolved that problem. If O'Byrne is in fact a sleeper in this draft, and could become a good #4 dman we will have a very impossing d corps with Komi (6'4), O'Byrne (6'5) and Archer (6'4) at the right side. Adding Souray, Markov and Hainsey to the left side makes it look even better

[NWTHabsFan]

montreal said:

It's great that he's going to Cornell, who might be the top team in the ECAC. (if they get their goalie back, Yotes might sign Leneavu sp?) Anyway, I get some Cornell games throughout the season, so I'll keep a look out for when he's on tv.

Thanks, I look forward to the reports. Up here in Canada, NCAA coverage is non-existant, but we do get glimpses at the AHL, CHL and Cdn university on the major networks that folks can get on cable and/or satellite. Some of the local cable channels do a good job of profiling their local team, so that plays to a very small local audience. Sportsnet Pacific covers lots of Nucks games, Sportsnet West splits between Oil and Flames, Sportsnet Ontario shows Sens games, and our beloved CBC have permanent cameras set up in the ACC. That goodness for Radio Canada and RDS for us Habs fans.

[seventeen]

It's funny that he states the next step is 2 years of college. Not 4. Two. Seems he has his career path pretty well planned out.

[montreal]

NWTHabsFan said:

Thanks, I look forward to the reports. Up here in Canada, NCAA coverage is non-existant, but we do get glimpses at the AHL, CHL and Cdn university on the major networks that folks can get on cable and/or satellite. Some of the local cable channels do a good job of profiling their local team, so that plays to a very small local audience. Sportsnet Pacific covers lots of Nucks games, Sportsnet West splits between Oil and Flames, Sportsnet Ontario shows Sens games, and our beloved CBC have permanent cameras set up in the ACC. That goodness for Radio Canada and RDS for us Habs fans.

With direct tv, I get, NCAA, AHL, ECHL, WJC's, and 1000+NHL games. I get sportsnet Ontario from time to time, but there's no set program. Different games from different networks means I always have to check and see what games I get and don't get. There's talk that direct tv will pick up the new NCAA hockey channel that is supposed to be forming next season. Either way I get 3 or 4 NCAA games each night on weekends.

[M. Beaux-Eaux]

seventeen said:

It's funny that he states the next step is 2 years of college. Not 4. Two. Seems he has his career path pretty well planned out.

Ah yes, the Accelerated NHL Program.

[blny]

seventeen said:

It's funny that he states the next step is 2 years of college. Not 4. Two. Seems he has his career path pretty well planned out.

I caught that too. I'm drooling with anticipation .... Markov .... Komi ..... Hainsey .... Souray ..... O'byrne ....

Excluding Markov, that's a pretty imposing core of d'men. I could get very used to that.

[NWTHabsFan]

seventeen said:

It's funny that he states the next step is 2 years of college. Not 4. Two. Seems he has his career path pretty well planned out.

Completing education right away is important, but the temptation of a possible pro contract leaves options open!! Just look our recent top NCAA prospects like Komi and Higgs, they are signing before finishing up school.

[seventeen]

Yes, not at all unusual for a 1st rounder or even a 2nd rounder. Third rounders and on usually expect to take longer. Nice to see his positive approach.