Michael Glen Wayne Ryder (born March 31, 1980) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
former professional
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
right winger
A midfielder is an outfield position in association football.
Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...
. Ryder played 12 seasons in the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
(NHL) with the
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
,
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
,
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and were founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minne ...
, and
New Jersey Devils.
He was a member of the
2011 Stanley Cup-winning Bruins squad, scoring eight goals during the
2011 Stanley Cup Playoffs
The 2011 Stanley Cup playoffs of the National Hockey League (NHL) began on April 13, 2011, after the conclusion of the 2010–11 NHL regular season. The first game of the Finals between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins was held on June ...
to help Boston to their first title since 1972.
Playing career
Junior
Ryder played for the
Hull Olympiques
The Gatineau Olympiques are a junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey team based in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada, that plays in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). Starting with the 2021–22 season, the Olympiques play home games at Ce ...
of the
QMJHL
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The le ...
.
Montreal Canadiens
Ryder was drafted by the
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...
in the
1998 NHL Entry Draft, 8th round, 216th overall. He hired hockey agent Thayne Campbell before signing with Montreal.
On May 30, 2003, Ryder scored the winning goal to end the longest game in
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
history. His goal at 14:56 of the fourth overtime period gave the
Hamilton Bulldogs
The Hamilton Bulldogs are a major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League that began to play in the 2015–16 season. Based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, the Bulldogs play their home games at FirstOntario Centre. They were purcha ...
a 2–1 win over the
Houston Aeros in Game 2 of the
Calder Cup
The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League. It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars.
The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In its cur ...
Finals.
In the
2003–04 NHL season
The 2003–04 NHL season was the 87th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup champions were the Tampa Bay Lightning, who won the best of seven series four games to three against the Calgary Flames.
For the fourth time in ...
, he played in the
NHL YoungStars Game The NHL YoungStars Game was an annual match held as part of the National Hockey League All-Star Game weekend activities, which ran from the 2002 All-Star Game to the 2009 game, featuring notable young NHL players and leading prospects.
Replaci ...
. He was named the NHL Rookie of the Month for February 2004. He finished the season leading all rookies in points, powerplay points, shots, and goals. During the
2004–05 NHL lockout he played for
Leksands IF
Leksands Idrottsförening is a Swedish ice hockey team from the town of Leksand in the region of Dalarna. The team plays in the top-tier league, SHL, after succeeding through the 2019 SHL qualifiers and thus earning promotion to the SHL. The c ...
of the
second division of Swedish hockey. He reached 30 goals in back-to-back seasons after the lockout.
On April 7, 2007, he scored a
natural hat-trick in the 2nd period against the
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...
when the Canadiens were down 3–1. This was the most important game of the regular season since the Leafs, Canadiens, and the
New York Islanders were vying for the last playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, and the game would determine which team would take the last playoff spot. Despite Ryder's effort, the Canadiens eventually lost the game 6–5.
The Canadiens fared better from another excellent performance from Ryder in a historic comeback against the
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...
on February 19, 2008. Ryder scored two goals and added an assist in a 6–5 win after the Canadiens were trailing by a score of 5–0. At the time, this comeback marked the only time the Canadiens won when trailing 5–0 in the team's 99-year history. Ryder was initially credited with a hat trick, however, his last goal was later changed as it was determined that his shot went off teammate
Mark Streit
Mark Thomas Streit (born 11 December 1977) is a Swiss former professional ice hockey defenceman. He was formerly the captain of both the New York Islanders and the Swiss national team. Streit was one of the few swingmen in the NHL who could ...
's leg before hitting the back of the net.
Ryder's contract expired on June 30, 2008, and the Canadiens did not re-sign him, due in part to his scoring only 14 goals and 17 assists for 31 points, the lowest totals of his career. He also played in only 4 of Montreal's 12 playoff games.
Boston Bruins
On July 1, 2008, Ryder signed a contract with the
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
for 3 years worth approximately $4 million per season. It is thought that part of the reason Ryder signed with Boston was that Ryder has had nearly six seasons worth of play (three in junior hockey, one in the AHL and two with the Canadiens) under
Claude Julien, the Bruins coach at the time.
On October 9, 2008, Ryder scored his first goal in a Bruins uniform in Boston's season opener against the
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...
, a 5-4 Bruins victory. The goal coincidentally was Ryder's 100th career goal. He went on to score 27 goals in his first season with Boston as the Bruins clinched first overall in the Eastern Conference. Their first round matchup was with the eighth seeded Montreal Canadiens, Ryder's former club. He scored four goals in the series as the Bruins made quick work of Montreal, sweeping them in four straight games. Ryder was then held to only one goal during the Bruins seven game Conference semi-finals loss to the
Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ...
.
Ryder won his first and only
Stanley Cup on June 15, 2011, when the Bruins defeated the
Vancouver Canucks
The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...
4-0 in Game 7 of the
Stanley Cup Finals. With this victory, Ryder became the second native of
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic Canada, Atlantic region. The province comprises t ...
to win a Stanley Cup championship after
Daniel Cleary
Daniel Michael Cleary (born December 18, 1978) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Chicago Blackhawks, Edmonton Oilers, Phoenix Coyotes and Detroit Red Wings. He currently s ...
of
Harbour Grace
Harbour Grace is a town in Conception Bay on the Avalon Peninsula in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. With roots dating back to the 16th century, it is one of the oldest towns in North America.
It is located about northwest of ...
, who accomplished the feat with the
Detroit Red Wings in
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
.
Alex Newhook
Alex Newhook (born January 28, 2001) is a Canadian professional ice hockey center currently playing for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Avalanche in the first round, 16th overall, of the 2019 NHL ...
of the
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche (colloquially known as the Avs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The Avalanche play thei ...
joined these two when winning it in
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...
.
Dallas Stars
On July 1, 2011, Ryder signed a two-year, $7 million contract with the Dallas Stars.
In the
2011–12 season, Ryder recorded his career high 35th goal during the Dallas Stars 3-1 win against the Edmonton Oilers on March 28th, 2012 at Rexall Place in Edmonton.
Return to Montreal
During his second year with the Stars in the
lockout
Lockout may refer to:
* Lockout (industry), a type of work stoppage
**Dublin Lockout, a major industrial dispute between approximately 20,000 workers and 300 employers 1913 - 1914
* Lockout (sports), lockout in sports leagues
**MLB lockout, lock ...
shortened
2012–13
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
season, Ryder was traded back to the Montreal Canadiens, along with a third round pick in the
2013 NHL Entry Draft
The 2013 NHL Entry Draft was the 51st NHL Entry Draft. All seven rounds of the draft took place on June 30, 2013, at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The top three selections were Nathan MacKinnon going to the Colorado Avalanche, Al ...
, in exchange for
Erik Cole
Erik Thomas Cole (born November 6, 1978) is an American former professional ice hockey left winger. Originally drafted by the Hurricanes in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft, Cole played 15 seasons in the NHL for the Carolina Hurricanes, Edmonton Oiler ...
.
New Jersey Devils
On July 5, 2013, Ryder signed a two-year, $7 million contract with the New Jersey Devils. Due to the Devils policy under
Lou Lamoriello
Louis P. Lamoriello (born October 21, 1942) is an American professional ice hockey executive who is the president of hockey operations and general manager for the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL). He is also the former ge ...
of numbers above 40 being prohibited, Ryder switched from wearing sweater 73 to 17 during his tenure with the club.
After starting strongly in the 2013–14 season with 16 goals, Ryder struggled in the second half of the season, with only 2 goals after January 11, 2014.
January 16, 2015 Ryder played in his 800th NHL Game, Devils fell 5-1 to the Anaheim Ducks at the Honda Center in Anaheim.
End of career
Ryder's 237 goals and 484 total points in the NHL are records for players born in Newfoundland and Labrador, making him the province's most successful hockey player ever.
June 10,2017 Michael Ryder was inducted into Hockey NL's Hall of Fame.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
International
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ryder, Michael
1980 births
Living people
Boston Bruins players
Canadian ice hockey right wingers
Dallas Stars players
Hamilton Bulldogs (AHL) players
Hull Olympiques players
Ice hockey people from Newfoundland and Labrador
Leksands IF players
Montreal Canadiens draft picks
Montreal Canadiens players
New Jersey Devils players
People from Bonavista, Newfoundland and Labrador
Quebec Citadelles players
Stanley Cup champions
Tallahassee Tiger Sharks players
Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in Sweden