After a medicore (subpar for McCabe's standards) 2002-2003 season, Bryan came storming back in 2003-2004. It was most definetly a year to a remember. In playing only 75 games, he eclipsed and surpassed his career year totals in  '02 in virtually every category (Assists, +/-, PIM, Shots, Powerplay Points...) while managing to keep his penalty minutes down significantly to 86. The only significant category he did not surpass is goals, which he missed by one (16 to 17) but mind you, he played 7 more games in '02. McCabe also had two memorable game winning goals.


Q & A (Courtesy of www.mapleleafs.com):

Q: Who was the biggest influence on your hockey career?
McCABE: My parents (Ralph and Barbara).

Q: If you weren't playing hockey, what do you think you would be doing?
McCABE: Maybe I'd be a teacher.

Q: Did you idolize any National Hockey League players as a kid?
McCABE: Wayne Gretzky, Chris Chelios, Scott Stevens, Ray Bourque. I liked all of those players growing up. It was an honour the first time I got the chance to play against them when I was with the New York Islanders.

Q: What is the highlight of your NHL career?
McCABE: My first NHL goal (against Mark Fitzpatrick of the Florida Panthers on October 31, 1995), and playing in my first NHL game (against the Boston Bruins on October 7, 1995).

Q: If you could own any car, what would it be?
McCABE: Probably a Ferrari.

Q: What is your favourite food?
McCABE: Steak.

Q: What is your typical pre-game meal?
McCABE: Chicken and pasta.

Q: What is your favourite band?
McCABE: Metallica.

Q: Do you have a favourite movie?
McCABE: Field Of Dreams.

Q: What is your favourite TV show?
McCABE: Seinfeld.

Q: Who are your favourite actors?
McCABE: Al Pacino and Julia Roberts.

Q: Is there a country you hope to visit one day?
McCABE: I want to go to Italy.

Q: What is your favourite NHL road city?
McCABE: Chicago.

Q: What sports do you participate in besides hockey?
McCABE: I like baseball, but I'll play any sport - football, basketball, you name it.

Q: What do you enjoy doing away from the rink?
McCABE: Golfing.

Q: Do you have a dream foursome?
McCABE: Freddy Couples, Phil Mickelson and Tiger Woods.


...Continued from March 2003


Q: Who were your mentors and favourite players growing up?

McCABE: "Well I grew up in Calgary so my favourite player probably would have been Lanny McDonald. Some of my role models are my parents and my older brother. He's three years older than me, so I grew up watching him play hockey and kind of tried to follow in his foot steps."


Q: Was making it to the NHL you childhood dream?

McCABE: "It's all I ever wanted to do. My parents put me on skates when I was two and by the time I was five all I was saying was I want to be an NHL player. And a funny story, I did a book report in about grade 6 about what you want to be when you get older and I did 'a hockey player'.... And the teacher wouldn't accept it because it wasn't a real job (laughs), so there you go!"


Q: Do you still consider hockey a game or is it a job now that you play in the NHL?

McCABE: "I still love it... it's not a job for me. I get paid to do something I love which I think anyone would like to do. I still enjoy coming to the rink every day and have a lot of fun doing it."


Q: Do you have any good luck rituals before a game?

McCABE: "I think it's more routine than anything. You know you put your left skate on before your right. You sleep a couple of hours a day. I think that's the best part of the routine. You usually eat the same meal cause that's all we have on the road is chicken and pasta... but other than that I'm not too bad."


Q: What was it like to score your first NHL goal?

McCABE: "It was awesome! I scored on Halloween in 1995 - I remember, in Florida, slapshot, five hole on a goalie there and I was jumping around like I had scored the game winning goal in the Stanley Cup, that's for sure."


Q: What is your best hockey memory?

McCABE: "The first goal was a big... first game was a big thing in Boston and probably my world junior experience. I had the opportunity to play two gold medal teams when I was younger and that was a big lift playing for your country."


Q: What's the best part about being a Toronto Maple Leaf?

McCABE: "It's great... you know every kid even coming from Calgary. I grew up watching the Leafs because that's all they play on Saturday nights, so you kind of become accustomed to the uniform and the crowds. It was a great feeling to come here and put on the jersey for the first time and go out there in front of a sold out crowd. It's a lot of fun."


Q: What is it like to play at the ACC?

McCABE: "It's great! It' not often you get the opportunity to play in front of a sold-out-crowd every night. Toronto is the hockey Mecca, it's the best place in the world to play. You got to love the pressure and the fans are critics, but I think it's a good thing. It puts a little pressure on you and makes you want to do well for them."


Q: Who's the toughest player to play against in the NHL?

McCABE: "There's a few... Jagr's one of then, Forsberg, Lemieux on the power play. So, there's many. There's a lot of good players out there."


Q: What's your least favourite sport to play?

McCABE: "Least favourite sport... Well, the only sport I didn't play growing up was football, although, I love to watch it. I pretty much like everything, soccer is probably my least favourite sport, the most boring to watch to me."


Q: What goes through your mind during a game?

McCABE: "A lot of emotion, a lot of intensity... just trying to tune out all our yelling behind the bench, just kidding! It's just fun, you're trying to be focused - you know, you want to compete every shift and get your rest when you're on the bench."


Q: What makes your hip-check so powerful?

McCABE: "Eat, eat and eat! You've got to have a big behind to hip check and I seem to have one of the biggest in the league I think! So that 's probably why it works to my advantage."


Q: What would be your message to young players trying to make the big leagues?

McCABE: "I'd just say have fun, enjoy the game, don't take it too seriously. You know, like I said before, to this day I still enjoy coming to the rink, I don't think you can go anywhere with something you don't like, so as long as you're still having fun you know you're in a good spot."


LIVE CHAT from NHL.com (April 18, 2003) April 17, 2003


Moderator: Welcome to NHL.com's moderated chat with Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Bryan McCabe. Bryan and the Maple Leafs are tied with Philadelphia, 2-2, in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. Bryan McCabe will join us in a few minutes. Bryan will take your questions now!

flyerfan211: Bryan, do you think whoever wins this series will have enough gas left in the tank to make it to the finals?
Bryan McCabe: I think it's the same as last year. We had two seven-game series in the first two rounds and managed fine. Hopefully, we'll be okay in the long run with guys coming back healthy.

blue_star: Bryan, do you feel the pressure is on you to relive the success you had in last years playoffs? Especially in Toronto where there is always more pressure given to players?
Bryan McCabe: Sure, I'd like to score like I did last year. There's always pressure playing in Toronto. I'd love to chip in offensively here and there. I put pressure on myself.

thebestfan66: Bryan, when you decided to go for the mohawk thing, did people, like your team mates, give you a hard time about it? What made you decide you were made for this hair style?
Bryan McCabe: Yes, the older teammates gave me a lot of grief, but the European guys liked it. My wife kind of gave me the idea.

rollins23: Bryan, who is the toughest opponent you have had to contain on the ice?
Bryan McCabe: Jaromir Jagr would be one and probably Peter Forsberg. In this series, the Flyers are all big a strong and play hard. They battle down low, but nobody in particular.

LETSGOPENS!: What team did you support/root for as a kid?
Bryan McCabe: Calgary Flames because I grew up there. I still have a lot of friends and family there. It's fun to play them.

hockeyguy: Bryan, how do you prepare for a playoff game differently, knowing it can go into two or three overtimes?
Bryan McCabe: Lots of hydration. I drink lots of Pedialite, designed for kids because it's got a lot of electrolytes. Stay away from caffeine.

dreamer1495: Bryan, out of all the defencemen you have been paired with during your years with the Leafs, who have you shared the most chemistry with?
Bryan McCabe: Well I played with Tommy the first few years that I've been here, but this year we've changed things up a bit. I like playing with Glen Wesley because he communicates a lot and is always in good defensive position, making my job easy.

giaco82: Bryan, who is your room mate on road trips?
Bryan McCabe: Travis Green has been my roommate for three years since he's been here. We knew each other before and it's worked out well.

gamewinner: What were your comments on the play of Ed Belfour last night?
Bryan McCabe: Outstanding! He saved almost 80 shots. Without him the game wouldn't have gone as long as it did. He kept us in it early and late.

little_charlie: What do you believe the Leafs are going to have to do to win the series?
Bryan McCabe: Get some more pucks to the net and create havoc in front of their goalie. Create a little more offense. We'd also like to limit our turnovers.

blues_rule: How did you feel about the trade for Nolan?
Bryan McCabe: I think it's worked out well. He's one of the top power forwards in the League. For the now, we want an opportunity to win the Stanley Cup and Owen gives us that opportunity.

guest: What do you think about the Mighty Ducks sweeping the Detroit Red Wings??
Bryan McCabe: I think it's great for them. I feel bad for Cujo. It certainly wasn't his fault. Giguere played out of his mind. He could have had three teams shooting pucks at him and still won. In the long run, everybody's happy with Detroit out, espcially with the veterans and experience they have.

ice-rat: Do you have any traditions/rituals before a game?
Bryan McCabe: Eat chicken, pasta and sleep a couple hours before the game. The night before I like to see a movie.

giaco82: Bryan, is playing in Philly harder than most other arenas?
Bryan McCabe: It's the same. The fans are loud in any arena. It's tough to play on the road during the playoffs, but I love it. I think most guys do. They feed off the noise.

guy_blank: Bryan, are there any things being said on the ice with former Leaf Dmitry Yushkevich during this series?
Bryan McCabe: No trash talking or anything. He's a good player, he's been a work horse for them like he was for us.

T.0.baby: Bryan, how will the Leafs rebound after last night's tough loss?
Bryan McCabe: Hopefully good. Playoff hockey is like a roller coaster. You're up and down, but you have to stay on an even keel. It's good to have 2 days rest. It's much needed. We'll refocus and go at it Saturday.

# 1McCabe fan!!: How did you choose number 24? Did it have any significance to you?
Bryan McCabe: No, 4 was my number, but it was taken when I got it. I like the number 4 so I chose 24. Number 44 never was lucky for me.

Moderator: Thanks so much for all of your questions and a big thank you to Bryan McCabe for taking the time to participate in the chat. Bryan and the Leafs will resume their series against Philadelphia Saturday at 3 p.m. ET. Look for more moderated chats on NHL.com soon.