The dying of Montreal Canadiens legend Ken Dryden resonated in political circles on Saturday the place the previous NHL nice left his mark as a long-standing member of Parliament and former Liberal cupboard minister.
The Montreal Canadiens group introduced Dryden’s dying shortly after 12:30 a.m. Saturday. He died Friday at age 78 following a battle with most cancers.
Dryden left the Toronto Maple Leafs group to run federally in 2004 for the Liberal Occasion of Canada, elected within the Toronto driving of York Centre.
He was named minister of social growth minister in former prime minister Paul Martin’s cupboard. His former chief of employees tells The Canadian Press that his curiosity and his ease with others helped him navigate the political world.
“A lot of people would have commented that he seemed to be a fish out of water (as an MP), but I’m starting to think it was perhaps the water that was different and not the fish so much,” stated Mark Watton.
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“He was genuinely interested in everyone he met including his colleagues around the cabinet table, his staff, his colleagues in Parliament and the advocates or constituents or others who he would come across.”
It was that insatiable curiosity exhibited by Dryden that made him stand out, Watton stated.
“Even though he was most passionate about the social policy matters that we’re in front of him as the minister of social development, he was genuinely curious about everything else around the cabinet table,” Watton stated.
Dryden held onto his seat in Toronto’s York Centre driving in 2006 when the Liberals had been ousted and made a bid for the open Liberal management with Martin’s departure, finally dropping.
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Lise Jolicoeur, a former press secretary in Ottawa who would later go on to work on Dryden’s management bid, recalled two situations the place his humanity and decency stood out throughout his interactions along with her.
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At one time through the Martin authorities, a colleague talked about Dryden wished to talk to her after query interval. She had been present process colon most cancers remedies on the time.
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“And I was like, what in God’s name does Ken Dryden want to talk to me about personally about? Right? Like this was odd for a cabinet minister to ask a press secretary for a chat,” Jolicoeur recalled.
He got here to ask her particularly about her most cancers struggle.
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“The fact that he took the time was just, it just tells you that kind of person that he is, he’s a busy man, he was in politics, he was trying to get the child care deal done, there’s a lot of things going on,” Jolicoeur stated.
“But he took the time and noticed me and took the time to talk to me about it, which I found very telling of the man.”
Jolicoeur would go on to serve press secretary for Dryden’s management bid the place she ended up combating ovarian most cancers through the marketing campaign. As he criss-crossed the nation throughout his bid, he made certain to make time to go to her in hospital throughout an Ottawa cease. It was simply Dryden as he was.
“In every conversation you had with the man, it was always about you. You’re talking to this hero, Canadian legend … but he never made you feel that way. He always wanted to know about you,” Jolicoeur stated.
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Dryden gained his federal seat once more in 2008, however misplaced in 2011 to the Conservatives.
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Prime Minister Mark Carney paid tribute to Dryden: “a Canadian hockey legend and hall of famer, public servant and inspiration.”
“His return to university at the height of his playing career taught the importance of balance in life. His post-hockey career demonstrated the value of public service,” Carney stated.
“Few Canadians have given extra, or stood taller, for our nation.
“Ken Dryden was Big Canada. And he was Best Canada,” Carney added.
Pablo Rodriguez, a former Montreal Liberal MP elected the identical yr as Dryden, remembered Dryden as an distinctive, deeply human particular person.
“Ken was a giant at all levels,” Rodriguez, presently the chief of the Liberal Occasion of Quebec, in an interview.
“He was a giant on the ice, but also giant physically, like he was 6-foot-4, the type of person you don’t want to be behind in a picture … but he was so kind, so kind, he was there to help caucus members and to listen to you.”
Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc recalled how the legendary netminder and hockey icon grew to become his caucus colleague and cupboard minister 30 years later, championing insurance policies reminiscent of early studying and little one care.
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“I will also never forget the moments when he rose to speak in the House of Commons — sitting at the desk in front of me,” LeBlanc stated on X. “His iconic reputation, impressive physical stature, booming voice, thoughtful ideas and kind personality allowed him to dominate that arena as well.”
In Quebec and Montreal, the place Dryden was an area legend, Quebec Premier François Legault additionally paid tribute.
“Like millions of Quebecers, I grew up admiring Ken Dryden,” Legault wrote on X. “Six-time Stanley Cup champion with the Habs, what an achievement! Author, MP, minister, he marked our history and an entire generation.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first printed Sept. 6, 2025.
— with recordsdata from Audrey Sanikopoulos in Montreal.
