Martin Biron

Last updated


BIOGRAPHY

BORN: Lac St. Charles, Quebec, August 15, 1977.
HOME:
HEIGHT: 6'1"-6'2".
WEIGHT: 154-168 lbs.
UNIFORM #: 00 (Buffalo), 43 (Buffalo, Philadelphia, NY Islanders, Bridgeport). Martin was the last player in the history of the National Hockey League to wear the number "00" - after he was returned to juniors in early 1996, the league made the number off-limits, and when he returned to the league, he switched to his current "43".
CATCHES: Left
JUNIOR TEAM: Beauport Harfangs (QMJHL), Hull Olympiques (QMJHL).

STYLE:
STRENGTHS: Rarely getting rattled, Biron is extremely poised for a goaltender of his age. Good agility and confidence.
WEAKNESSES: For a 6'1" goaltender, Biron is very small at 168 pounds, and will have to fill out to ultimately reach his full potential.
Name pronouced bih-RAH.

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING:

"Biron got the call to Buffalo after Hasek went down with a strained groin. He has seen limited action, but still appears to be on track for an NHL career. Biron, who plays a butterfly style, was the American League player of the month in Feburary with five shutouts and was selected as the starting goaltender for the Canadian stars in the AHL All-Star Game. Before joining the Sabres he led the AHL in wins (25), shutouts (6) and was among the league leaders in goals-against average (1.92), minutes (2,280), saves (1,134) and save percentage (.936)." (Jim Kelley, The Hockey News Future Watch 1999)

"One of the top goaltending prospects in all of hockey, Biron has done his time in the minors. He was selected to the AHL's first all-star team in 1998-99 and seems ready to supplant Dwayne Roloson as backup in 1999-2000. When Dominik Hasek leaves the team, Biron will be right there to take his place." (The Sports Forecaster 1999-2000, p. 79)

"Because of the emergence of Biron, the Sabres are no longer worried about life after "The Dominator". With Hasek hurt for a large chunk of the schedule, Biron was forced into action and responded with a stellar rookie season. In fact, the young goaltender was among the league leaders in shutouts and may have been the biggest reason the Sabres were able to salvage their season. He received almost no offensive support or his wins total would have been much higher. It will be interesting to see how much playing time Biron gets during Hasek's final season in the NHL." (The Sports Forecaster 2000-01, p. 68)

"Has nothing left to prove in the minor leagues, and should spend only one more season in a backup role. Should continue Buffalo's steep goaltending tradition. Has the mental fortitude to successfully replace a legend. Has Vezina Trophy written all over him." (The Sports Forecaster Online 2000-01)

"Biron did well in biding his time as the Sabres' backup netminder last year. He garnered a .500 record with decent stats overall (2.55 goals against, .909 save percentage and two shutouts). However, the 24-year-old's time to take over the starting reins is now. The 16th overall selection in 1995 is considered one of the best young goaltenders in the league. Despite the Dominik Hasek trade, Biron must have a strong training camp in order to cement the No. 1 job. If not, he'll have Finnish rookie Mika Noronen breathing down his neck before long." (The Sports Forecaster 2001-02, p. 70)

"Perhaps no NHL player faced more scrutiny in 2001-02 than Biron. Asked to step in to replace the departed Dominik Hasek, the rangy youngster more than met the challenge. In fact. Biron practically duplicated Hasek's Detroit numbers for goals-against average and save percentage while his 72 appearances equaled the most ever by his predecessor in a Buffalo uniform. Overall, Biron answered numerous questions in his first season as a starter. The young goalkeeper now faces a new challenge from surging backup Mika Noronen. However, Biron's character will prevent him from relinquishing the No. 1 role without a fight for now." (The Sports Forecaster 2002-03, p. 68)

"[Buffalo coach Lindy] Ruff says his top job is to get Martin Biron back on his game. Biron looked good late in 2001-02, but regressed last season. He must stop giving up bad goals and having the occasional bad game to emerge as the clear-cut No. 1" (Sporting News Hockey 2003-04, p. 33)

"Of Buffalo's three NHL-caliber netminders, Biron is the only one to not see any competitive action during the lockout. That may hurt his chances of staving off both Mika Noronen and Ryan Miller as the organization's No. 1 netminder. Biron has been a quality netminder for the Sabres, but can he raise his game?" (The Sports Forecaster 2005-06, p. 98)


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SEASON RECORDS:

REGULAR SEASON
Year  Team                        GP    Min   W   L   T  OL     GA    GAA   Shots    Sv%   ShO   G   A   PiM     S/60    PERS     3STARS
93-94 Trois-Rivieres Estacad.QAAA 23   1412  14   8   1         80   3.40                    1
94-95 Beauport Harfangs QMJHL     56   3193  29  16   9        132   2.48                    3   0   0     6
95-96 Buffalo Sabres NHL           3    119   0   2   0         10   5.04      64   .844     0   0   0     0    32.27  897.53
      Beauport Harfangs QMJHL     55   3201  29  17   7        152   2.85                    1   0   0    12
96-97 Beauport Harfangs QMJHL     18    928   6   9   1         61   3.94                    1   0   0     6
      Canada WORLD JUNIOR          1      1   0   0   0          0   0.00                    0 
      Hull Olympiques QMJHL       16    974  11   4   1         43   2.65                    2   0   1    16
97-98 Rochester Americans AHL     41   2312  14  18   6        113   2.93    1220   .907     5   0   1    10    31.66  960.15
      South Carolina Stingry ECHL  2     86   0   1   1          3   2.09      42   .929     0   0   0     2    29.30  977.41
98-99 Buffalo Sabres NHL           6    281   1   2   1         10   2.14     120   .917     0   0   0     0    25.62  959.37
      Rochester Americans AHL     52   3129  36  13   3        108   2.07    1532   .930     6   0   3    22    29.38  978.47
99-00 Rochester Americans AHL      6    344   6   0   0         12   2.09     158   .924     1   0   0     8    27.56  969.98
      Buffalo Sabres NHL          41   2229  19  18   2         90   2.42     988   .909     5   0   0     6    26.59  953.23
00-01 Buffalo Sabres NHL          18    918   7   7   1         39   2.55     427   .909     2   0   0     0    27.91  955.18   4-0-2 (22)
      Rochester Americans AHL      4    239   3   1   0          4   1.00      86   .955     1   0   0     2
01-02 Buffalo Sabres NHL          72   4085  31  28  10        151   2.22    1781   .915     4   0   1     8    26.16  958.81
02-03 Buffalo Sabres NHL          54   3170  17  28   6        135   2.56    1468   .908     4   0   1    12
03-04 Buffalo Sabres NHL          52   2972  26  18   5        125   2.52    1442   .913     2   0   2    10
05-06 Buffalo Sabres NHL          35   1934  21   8       3     93   2.88     980   .905     1   0   1    10
06-07 Buffalo Sabres NHL          19   1066  12   4       1     54   3.04     533   .899     0   0   0    25
      Philadelphia Flyers NHL     16    935   6   8       2     47   3.02     509   .908     0   0   0     0
NINE (9) NHL SEASONS             316  17709 140 123  25   6    754   2.55    8312  0.909    18   0   5    71

POST-SEASON
Year  Team                        GP    Min   W   L   GA    GAA   Shots    Sv%   ShO   G   A   PiM     S/60    PERS
94-95 Beauport Harfangs QMJHL     16    900   8   7   37   2.47                    4   0   0     0
95-96 Beauport Harfangs QMJHL     19   1134  12   7   64   3.39                    0
96-97 Hull Olympiques QMJHL        6    325   3   1   19   3.51                    0
97-98 Rochester Americans AHL      4    239   1   3   16   4.01                    0   0   0     0
98-99 Rochester Americans AHL     20   1167  12   8   42   2.16                    1   0   3    10

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