Former Mississippi Right Wing Ryder Named NHL Rookie of the Month

March 2, 2004 - ECHL (ECHL) News Release

PRINCETON, N.J. - Former Mississippi and current Montreal Canadiens right wing Michael Ryder has been named National Hockey League Rookie of the Month for February.

Ryder, who has been a runner-up for the award each of the past two months, led all NHL rookies in scoring with 12 points (5g-7a) in 13 games, including a six-game scoring streak at the end of the month.

Ryder earned a point on the game-winning goal in five of the Canadiens eight victories in February. He assisted on Mike Ribeiro's game-winning goal in a 6-4 win against Chicago on February 1 and scored the game-winning goal and had an assist in a 2-1 win over the New York Islanders on February 5. He had a pair of assists, including one on the game-winning goal by Pierre Dagenais, in a 4-1 win over Calgary on February 19 and collected an assist on Ribeiro's game winner in a 4-1 victory over the New York Rangers on February 23. He closed out the month assisting on Ribeiro's game-winning overtime goal in a 1-0 win over the Carolina Hurricanes on February 28 that extended his scoring streak to six games (4g-4a).

Ryder, who made his NHL Debut on October 9, entered the week leading all NHL rookies with 17 assists and 26 points in 40 games. The 23-year-old is tied for third among rookies with three power-play goals and ranks fourth with nine goals.

Selected in the ninth round (216th overall) by Montreal in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft, Ryder scored 14 goals and 27 points in 20 games with Mississippi in 2001-02. The 6-1 and 195-pound Ryder was chosen to represent Mississippi in the 2002 ECHL All-Star Game, but was unable to participate after being called up to Quebec of the American Hockey League.

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