Look Inside the Habs Room, After O’Byrne’s Unfortunate Mistake

Seriously…
I’m happy to see cooler minds have prevailed, in the case of the Montreal Canadiens fans vs. Ryan O’Byrne. It’s nice to know everyone recognizes the 24-year old, playing big minutes for the first time in his professional career, made a big mistake. Unfortunately for him, that mistake cost his team a point in the standings.

And what of the fans reaction, chanting his name in a taunting fashion as the shootout came to a close? Well…What did you expect? Was it moronic? Of course it was, but you wouldn’t expect any different from a faction of fans that are likely as fickle as any in professional sports. The very same fans booed Mark Streit last night (which I don’t have as much of a problem with because those boos had more to do with trying to get Streit off his game, than anything malicious).

And if you were a normal fan (you know, one with at least half a brain) you felt bad for Ryan O’Byrne. I know I did…

The shootout ended in it’s typical anticlimactic fashion, and the rush to the dressing room ensued. I stood with Michael Whalen of Tsn, as we synonymously agreed, Ryan O’Byrne would be there to face the music when the doors to the dressing room opened. A couple of unnamed French reporters said “no way”. Whalen turned to me and said, “I guarantee he’ll be there. Ryan is a character guy, with integrity, he’ll do the right thing”.

I’m painting an image for you:
Two sliding silver doors mark the entrance to the Canadiens dressing room. Reporters and cameramen flood the entrance, and wait for the room to be opened. There are roughly 45 bodies waiting to pounce on whoever will give them their clips for the night. On a night where there’s a story that unfolds, and a player is at the centre of it, you can bet the media has chosen their first target to attack upon entry to the lockerroom. Last night, it was obviously going to be Ryan O’Byrne.

As the doors open, Steve Begin is to the immediate right, Higgins to his right. Saku Koivu is taking off his skates in the middle of the room, and Price is at the far end, with Max Lapierre between Koivu and Price. Directly accross from Koivu stood Ryan O’Byrne, and Josh Gorges eventually wanders in past O’Byrne, on the same side of the room.

I had a different strategy last night. As all 45 members of the media swarmed Ryan O’Byrne, killing each other in the process to get to him first, I strolled over to Koivu who was still hunched over his equipment. As I arrived to speak to him, he lifted his head and saw the mad scramble towards his young teammate, and did exactly what I wanted him to do. He shook his head vigorously, and with a look of disgust, muttered to himself “f_cking unbelievable”.

At least he wasn’t the only one who thought so. And one media member had the audacity to ask O’Byrne “Did the coach make you come out here to face us?”, which I can guarantee you got some ugly glares from the others in the scrum.

Player after player defended their teammate, and spoke of the guilt of not being able to get the game back for him. The coach adamantly defended his young defenseman, and went as far to say “He was playing a real good game, until that happened…I think he’s been very good since we sat him down (a few games ago)”.

Unfortunately for O’Byrne, it seems as though every time he makes a mistake it ends up costing the Canadiens a goal. If you go back to the Boston game Saturday night, he was playing his best hockey of the season before he bit on one of Phil Kessel’s moves; a play that inevitably gave Milan Lucic, and the Boston Bruins a second wind. Last night he was playing a great game, but on the penalty kill he loses his man down low, and is unable to stop Trent Hunter from burying one from inside the blue paint. And then the gaff that will have him treated poorly in the Bell Centre for the next little while.

His teammates defended and consoled him, but if there were one in particular who probably gave him a shoulder to cry on, I’d guess it was Patrice Brisebois; a player who understands all too well how vicious Canadiens fans, and the media can be.

In the end, Carbonneau simply equates the loss to deficiencies with the special teams. The question is, what else was lost in this game?

Ryan O’Byrne’s confidence? Confidence in Ryan O’Byrne?
We’ll have to wait and see…
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Hallelujah for Josh Gorges! 1st goal as a Canadien, and he confirmed to me last night, there’s 20 more on the way. We both shared a good laugh over that one. But seriously! Most improved player in Montreal. Gorges has been an absolute rock on D, and anyone who’s watched the game long enough can see how much confidence he plays with. He too was a guy who was given a very rough time by these Montreal fans at the beginning of his tenure as a Canadien. Look at him now…he’s clearly a fan-favorite…and with good reason!
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No time to cry over spilt milk…The Red Wings are waiting.
Which Canadiens will show up? The ones who “play like sh_t but win” according to Guy Carbonneau last night. Or the ones who “play great and lose”?