Tonight, Bobby Ryan was named the winner of this year’s Masterton Trophy.
Awarded annually, the Masterton Trophy goes to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey.
And this year, the Professional Hockey Writers Association has selected Bobby Ryan. Flyers forward Oscar Lindblom and Stars defenceman Stephen Johns were also nominated.
Ryan becomes the second Senators to win the award following Craig Anderson’s win back in 2016/2017.
In a mostly uneventful season for the Senators, Bobby Ryan’s inspiring return to the Sens line up stood out as a clear high point.
Ryan’s struggles away from the rink have been well-documented at this point. Everyone knew about the difficult upbringing he endured but this last season, we learned that Ryan was fighting an ongoing personal battle.
His willingness to share that story with others but also face that adversity head on served as inspiration for others.
Ryan himself has talked about hearing from a number of fellow NHLers going through similar although far less public battles.
Ryan’s triumph in the face of such personal adversity, first through his off-ice recovery and then on that magical night at the CTC, is truly what sports are all about.
It was one of those rare times when you are reminded that not only are these pro athletes real human beings with real human challenges but that sometimes, sports is about so much more than the game.
Words like adversity, character and leadership get thrown around a lot in the hockey world. But those are exactly the words that come to mind when I think about Bobby Ryan.
A well-deserved honour.
