Ryan O'Byrne
Encyclopedia
Ryan David O'Byrne is a Canadian
professional ice hockey
player currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche
of the National Hockey League
(NHL).
in British Columbia and played two season's of junior in the BCHL
with the Victoria Salsa and Nanaimo Clippers
. Instead of continuing a CHL career, O'Byrne opted to play U.S. collegiate hockey and committed to Cornell University
of New York
.
Prior to playing his freshman year with Cornell, Ryan was drafted in the third round, 79th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens
in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft
. Selected due to his large physical frame and potential as a shut-down defenseman, he played in 31 games with the Big Red contributing only 2 assists. Improving offensively with 3 goals and 10 points in his sophomore season of 2004–05, O'byrne helped Cornell regain the ECAC Championship with a 3-1 win over Harvard
before losing in the West Regional Final to the University of Minnesota
.
In his junior year, O'byrne entrenched himself as a top defender within Cornell's ECAC leading defense corps to be selected as a First Team All-Ivy player. Despite missing nearly a month to injury, O'Byrne led all Big Red defenseman with 7 goals and 13 points in 28 games and was named in the ECAC Third-Team before losing in a rematch to Harvard in the ECAC Championship. O'Byrne was selected by Cornell Coach Mike Schäfer as an alternate
captain, but decided to forgo his senior year to begin his professional career signing a two-year entry level contract with the Montreal Canadiens on August 9, 2006.
affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs
, for the 2006–07 season. As a stay-at-home defensive-defenseman, Ryan produced just 12 assists in 80 games with the Bulldogs, waiting until the playoffs to score his first professional goals. In scoring his first goal, an opening series clinching goal over the Rochester Americans
, he helped the Bulldogs advance to the Conference Semi-finals. In the Championship finals he then produced his second game winning goal a game three win over the Hershey Bears
en route to claiming the Calder Cup
.
In the following 2007–08
season, O'Byrne resumed playing with Hamilton before he was later recalled to the Canadiens and made his NHL debut, recording two assists, in a 4-2 victory over the Boston Bruins
on December 6, 2007. Ryan missed a month of the season after suffering a broken thumb, before returning to health and scoring his first NHL goal in a 6-4 defeat to the San Jose Sharks
on March 4, 2008. He finished the season, while splitting time between Hamilton and Montreal, to finish with 33 games.
O'Byrne was then re-signed to a three-year contract with the Canadiens on July 16, 2008. He made the Canadiens opening night roster for the 2008–09 season, and was used as a reserve defenseman. With two stints in the AHL, O'Byrne appeared in 37 games for five assists, however his season was highlighted and gained the most attention on November 24, 2008, when he unintentionally tied the score with an own goal in the last minutes of a game against the New York Islanders
, in which the Canadiens would go on to lose 4-3 in overtime.
In his second game of the 2009–10 campaign with the Canadiens, Ryan suffered a knee injury causing him to miss the next 20 games. Upon his return, O'byrne established himself as a regular within the defense corps. On December 4, 2009, he changed his jersey number to 20 due to retiring of the number 3 in honour of Emile Bouchard
for the Canadiens Centennial celebrations. Similar to Ray Bourque's
homage to Phil Esposito
in Boston, Ryan wore the number 20 jersey underneath his number 3 jersey and as a surprise, unveiled his new number during the banner hanging and presented Bouchard his jersey as a token of being the last to wear the number 3 for the Canadiens. O'byrne finished his first full NHL season, appearing in a career high 55 games and 13 post-season games as the Canadiens reached the Eastern Conference finals.
To begin the 2010–11 season, O'Byrne was relegated as a depth defenceman on the Habs blueline. In the final year of his contract and unable to establish a position he was traded by the Canadiens to the Colorado Avalanche for forward prospect Michael Bournival on November 11, 2010. In his first game with the Avalanche, Ryan recorded a career high in ice time in a 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets
on November 12, 2010.
were arrested with force outside a Tampa Bay, Florida nightclub following the team's rookie dinner for a purse-snatching incident. He was charged that night with grand theft after police found him with a woman's purse in one hand making a call with her cellphone in the other. Kostopoulos was charged with resisting the officers after he was told to back off while they were dealing with O'Byrne. Both were eventually released on bail—O'Byrne's was $2,000, Kostopoulos' was $500. The charges against Kostopoulos were dropped a few weeks later, while those against O'Byrne were dropped in July 2008, after he apologized to the victim and conceded to do community service in Canada.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
player currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL).
Amateur
O'Byrne attended the private St. Michaels University SchoolSt. Michaels University School
St. Michaels University School is a private day and boarding school in the municipality of Saanich, which is a suburb of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. The school is currently under the direction of headmaster Robert Snowden...
in British Columbia and played two season's of junior in the BCHL
British Columbia Hockey League
The British Columbia Hockey League is a Junior "A" ice hockey league from British Columbia under Hockey Canada, a subsection of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. Founded in Vernon in 1961, the BCHL now includes 16 teams. These teams play in two conferences, known as the Coastal and the Interior...
with the Victoria Salsa and Nanaimo Clippers
Nanaimo Clippers
The Nanaimo Clippers are a Junior "A" Ice Hockey team based in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Coastal Conference of the British Columbia Hockey League...
. Instead of continuing a CHL career, O'Byrne opted to play U.S. collegiate hockey and committed to Cornell University
Cornell Big Red
The Cornell Big Red is the informal name of the sports teams, and other competitive teams, at Cornell University. The university sponsors 36 varsity sports, as well as numerous intramural and club teams. Cornell participates in NCAA Division I as part of the Ivy League.The men's and women's hockey...
of New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
Prior to playing his freshman year with Cornell, Ryan was drafted in the third round, 79th overall, by the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft
2003 NHL Entry Draft
The 2003 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville, Tennessee on June 21, 2003.Marc-Andre Fleury was selected first overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins, only the third goalie in NHL history selected as the first overall draft choice...
. Selected due to his large physical frame and potential as a shut-down defenseman, he played in 31 games with the Big Red contributing only 2 assists. Improving offensively with 3 goals and 10 points in his sophomore season of 2004–05, O'byrne helped Cornell regain the ECAC Championship with a 3-1 win over Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
before losing in the West Regional Final to the University of Minnesota
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities is a public research university located in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. It is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system and has the fourth-largest main campus student body in the United States, with 52,557...
.
In his junior year, O'byrne entrenched himself as a top defender within Cornell's ECAC leading defense corps to be selected as a First Team All-Ivy player. Despite missing nearly a month to injury, O'Byrne led all Big Red defenseman with 7 goals and 13 points in 28 games and was named in the ECAC Third-Team before losing in a rematch to Harvard in the ECAC Championship. O'Byrne was selected by Cornell Coach Mike Schäfer as an alternate
Captain (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, each team can designate an official captain for each game. The player serving as captain during the game wears a "C" on his or her jersey...
captain, but decided to forgo his senior year to begin his professional career signing a two-year entry level contract with the Montreal Canadiens on August 9, 2006.
Professional
After attending his first Montreal training camp, he was assigned to American Hockey LeagueAmerican Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
affiliate, the Hamilton Bulldogs
Hamilton Bulldogs
The Hamilton Bulldogs are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They play in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, at Copps Coliseum, nicknamed 'The Dog Pound'. They are the AHL affiliate of the NHL's Montreal Canadiens...
, for the 2006–07 season. As a stay-at-home defensive-defenseman, Ryan produced just 12 assists in 80 games with the Bulldogs, waiting until the playoffs to score his first professional goals. In scoring his first goal, an opening series clinching goal over the Rochester Americans
Rochester Americans
The Rochester Americans are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League, and a top affiliate of the Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home games in Rochester, New York, at the Blue Cross Arena at the War Memorial...
, he helped the Bulldogs advance to the Conference Semi-finals. In the Championship finals he then produced his second game winning goal a game three win over the Hershey Bears
Hershey Bears
The Hershey Bears Hockey Club is a professional ice hockey team playing in the American Hockey League, and is currently the top affiliate of the NHL Washington Capitals. The hockey club is based in the unincorporated town of Hershey, Pennsylvania, located within Derry Township some 14 miles east of...
en route to claiming the Calder Cup
Calder Cup
The Calder Cup is awarded annually to the playoff champion of the American Hockey League. The trophy is the world's second oldest continuous professional ice hockey championship, having first been awarded in 1937 following the 1936-37 AHL season, and continuously being awarded every year.The cup...
.
In the following 2007–08
2007-08 NHL season
The 2007–08 NHL season was the 91st season of operation of the National Hockey League . It began on September 29, 2007, with the regular season ending April 6, 2008...
season, O'Byrne resumed playing with Hamilton before he was later recalled to the Canadiens and made his NHL debut, recording two assists, in a 4-2 victory over the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
on December 6, 2007. Ryan missed a month of the season after suffering a broken thumb, before returning to health and scoring his first NHL goal in a 6-4 defeat to the San Jose Sharks
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
on March 4, 2008. He finished the season, while splitting time between Hamilton and Montreal, to finish with 33 games.
O'Byrne was then re-signed to a three-year contract with the Canadiens on July 16, 2008. He made the Canadiens opening night roster for the 2008–09 season, and was used as a reserve defenseman. With two stints in the AHL, O'Byrne appeared in 37 games for five assists, however his season was highlighted and gained the most attention on November 24, 2008, when he unintentionally tied the score with an own goal in the last minutes of a game against the New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, in which the Canadiens would go on to lose 4-3 in overtime.
In his second game of the 2009–10 campaign with the Canadiens, Ryan suffered a knee injury causing him to miss the next 20 games. Upon his return, O'byrne established himself as a regular within the defense corps. On December 4, 2009, he changed his jersey number to 20 due to retiring of the number 3 in honour of Emile Bouchard
Emile Bouchard
Émile Joseph "Butch" Bouchard, CM, CQ is a former Canadian ice hockey player who played defence with the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League from 1941 to 1956. He is member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, won four Stanley Cups, was captain of the Canadiens for eight years and was voted...
for the Canadiens Centennial celebrations. Similar to Ray Bourque's
Ray Bourque
Raymond Jean "Ray" Bourque is a former Canadian professional ice hockey player. He currently holds records for most goals, assists and points by a defenceman in the National Hockey League . Bourque has become near-synonymous with the Boston Bruins franchise, for which he played 21 seasons and...
homage to Phil Esposito
Phil Esposito
Philip Anthony Esposito, OC is a former Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Chicago Black Hawks, Boston Bruins and New York Rangers. He is an Honoured Member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and is considered to be one of the best to have...
in Boston, Ryan wore the number 20 jersey underneath his number 3 jersey and as a surprise, unveiled his new number during the banner hanging and presented Bouchard his jersey as a token of being the last to wear the number 3 for the Canadiens. O'byrne finished his first full NHL season, appearing in a career high 55 games and 13 post-season games as the Canadiens reached the Eastern Conference finals.
To begin the 2010–11 season, O'Byrne was relegated as a depth defenceman on the Habs blueline. In the final year of his contract and unable to establish a position he was traded by the Canadiens to the Colorado Avalanche for forward prospect Michael Bournival on November 11, 2010. In his first game with the Avalanche, Ryan recorded a career high in ice time in a 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Columbus Blue Jackets are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio, United States. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
on November 12, 2010.
February 2008 arrest
On February 11, 2008, O'Byrne and teammate Tom KostopoulosTom Kostopoulos
Thomas Kostopoulos is a Canadian professional ice hockey player currently playing for the Calgary Flames of the National Hockey League . Kostopoulos previously played with the Carolina Hurricanes, Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, and Pittsburgh Penguins...
were arrested with force outside a Tampa Bay, Florida nightclub following the team's rookie dinner for a purse-snatching incident. He was charged that night with grand theft after police found him with a woman's purse in one hand making a call with her cellphone in the other. Kostopoulos was charged with resisting the officers after he was told to back off while they were dealing with O'Byrne. Both were eventually released on bail—O'Byrne's was $2,000, Kostopoulos' was $500. The charges against Kostopoulos were dropped a few weeks later, while those against O'Byrne were dropped in July 2008, after he apologized to the victim and conceded to do community service in Canada.
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2001–02 | Victoria Salsa | BCHL British Columbia Hockey League The British Columbia Hockey League is a Junior "A" ice hockey league from British Columbia under Hockey Canada, a subsection of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. Founded in Vernon in 1961, the BCHL now includes 16 teams. These teams play in two conferences, known as the Coastal and the Interior... |
52 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 91 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Victoria Salsa | BCHL | 32 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 94 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Nanaimo Clippers Nanaimo Clippers The Nanaimo Clippers are a Junior "A" Ice Hockey team based in Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada. They are members of the Coastal Conference of the British Columbia Hockey League... |
BCHL | 9 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2003–04 | Cornell University Cornell University Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions... |
ECAC | 31 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 71 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Cornell University | ECAC | 33 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2005–06 | Cornell University | ECAC | 28 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 69 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 2006–07 AHL season The 2006–07 AHL season was the 71st season of the American Hockey League. Twenty-seven teams played 80 games each in the schedule. The Hamilton Bulldogs won their first Calder Cup, defeating the defending champions, the Hershey Bears in the finals.... |
Hamilton Bulldogs Hamilton Bulldogs The Hamilton Bulldogs are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They play in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, at Copps Coliseum, nicknamed 'The Dog Pound'. They are the AHL affiliate of the NHL's Montreal Canadiens... |
AHL American Hockey League The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League... |
80 | 0 | 12 | 12 | 129 | 22 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 32 | ||
| 2007–08 2007–08 AHL season The 2007–08 AHL season is the 72nd season of the American Hockey League. Twenty-nine teams played 80 games each in the schedule. The Chicago Wolves won their second Calder Cup, defeating the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the Calder Cup Final.-Team changes:... |
Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 20 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Montreal Canadiens Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ... |
NHL | 33 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 45 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2008–09 2008–09 NHL season The 2008–09 NHL season was the 92nd season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the first season since prior to the 2004–05 lockout in which every team played each other at least once during the season, following three seasons where teams only played against two divisions in the... |
Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 37 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 38 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 2008–09 2008–09 AHL season The 2008–09 AHL season is the 73rd season of the American Hockey League. 29 teams each played 80 games in the regular season, which ran from October 8 until April 12.-Team and NHL affiliation changes:... |
Hamilton Bulldogs | AHL | 18 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2009–10 2009–10 NHL season The 2009–10 NHL season was the 93rd season of operation of the National Hockey League , and the 100th season since the founding of the predecessor National Hockey Association . It ran from October 1, 2009, including four games in Europe on October 2 and 3—until April 11, 2010, with the 2010... |
Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 55 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 74 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 2010–11 2010–11 NHL season The 2010–11 NHL season was the 94th season of operation of the National Hockey League . It was the fourth consecutive season that opened in Europe with NHL Premiere . A record three events were scheduled, all in previous NHL Premiere cities: Helsinki, Finland; Stockholm, Sweden; and Prague, Czech... |
Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2010–11 | Colorado Avalanche Colorado Avalanche The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise... |
NHL | 64 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 71 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 192 | 2 | 24 | 26 | 252 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | ||||