It was no longer a secret, but Paul Byron took some time on Friday in Brossard to come and say it himself: he will no longer play hockey.
General manager Kent Hughes had rumored the thing a few weeks ago, and it was Byron who confirmed it verbally on Friday, when the Canadian was on his second day of training camp.
For Byron, the game jersey is now put away, replaced by a tracksuit, the official uniform of any NHL coach. He was named player development consultant for the Canadiens on Wednesday.
Byron, who did not play last season, hoped to be able to play this one. “I still want to play, but with the injury it’s impossible,” he admitted. I can’t play every day and train. I’m not able to do that anymore. Going on the ice as a coach is a little less intense… I’m capable of doing that. »
It will therefore be in this new role of consultant that Byron will be able to continue to work in the world of the Canadian. A new role that he began a little last season, when he was often seen in the club’s entourage at the Bell Center.
“Kent [Hughes] and Jeff [Gorton] invited me to go watch the games with them…it was nothing formal. But I wanted to see how this aspect of hockey works. I know I’m done playing, but how can I pass on my experience to others? That’s what I wanted to know. »
Ultimately, we can probably consider Byron as one of the Canadian’s best finds on waivers.
But if he can no longer continue today, it is above all for health reasons, he who underwent hip surgery in the summer of 2021, and who was only able to play 27 matches during the next season, that of 2021-2022.
“There are days when it still hurts… but day to day, life is pretty good. I adapted to that. Of course it’s better if I don’t play… I tried to skate more intensely and each time it really hurt the next day. »
After all this, what exactly will Paul Byron be left with? The many memories, no doubt. Like the one in May 2021 in Toronto, when he scored a spectacular diving goal during a playoff game against the Maple Leafs in the first playoff round.
“It’s probably the best goal of my life, the goal that everyone still talks to me about,” he concluded. A moment like this is like a dream. It was the end of a good career…”
