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Tales of a First-Round Nothing: My Life as an NHL Footnote
Terry Ryan was poised to take the hockey world by storm when he was selected eighth overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1995 NHL draft, their highest draft pick in a decade. Expected to go on to become a hockey star, Ryan played a total of eight NHL games for the Canadiens, scoring no goals and no not exactly the career he, or anyone else, was expecting. Though Terry’s NHL career wasn’t long, he experienced a lot and has no shortage of hilarious and fascinating revelations about life in pro hockey on and off the ice. In Tales of a First-Round Nothing, he recounts fighting with Tie Domi, partying with rock stars, and everything in between. Ryan tells it like it is, detailing his rocky relationship with Michel Therrien, head coach of the Canadiens, and explaining what life is like for a man who was unprepared to have his career over so soon.
240 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
October 30, 2015
If you are reading the review, you know the basic premise of this book - Highly touted NHL draft pick flails way downward to minor league obscurity. But TR is a true character and while the book is not very well-written and poorly organized, where there is gold, there is some of the finest and most ridiculous dressing room "for-the-boys" stories you ever going to find.
So, you have a tale of two books. The good stuff is bawdy or bloody beyond belief; absolute gold that had me tearing up with laughter. The bad stuff reads like an overdone Canadian Broadcast Company paean to "The Game" with Tim Horton's flavoured tears and Scotia Bank "it's more than just a game" romance dripping everywhere. It makes the book inconsistent and to be honest, TR's musings on why hockey is the greatest are well-trodden ground in countless books. His personal feelings about what it is like to see your dream slowly slipping away are underdeveloped and undercut when literally all is made good by a chance trip to an Eric Clapton concert. A ghost-writer, who could properly arrange his experiences to make this reconciliation more effective, would have served TR and his publisher well.
This book is a good companion to Sean Pronger's fabulous (and far superior) Journeyman tome. A fan of hockey will definitely gain a couple of hilarious anecdotes to whip out after cracking the 7th beer during the Saturday late game when the Doritos are all gone. Just don't expect a cerebral, Ken Dryden-type, level of insight into the game despite TR's attempts to convince you otherwise.
So, you have a tale of two books. The good stuff is bawdy or bloody beyond belief; absolute gold that had me tearing up with laughter. The bad stuff reads like an overdone Canadian Broadcast Company paean to "The Game" with Tim Horton's flavoured tears and Scotia Bank "it's more than just a game" romance dripping everywhere. It makes the book inconsistent and to be honest, TR's musings on why hockey is the greatest are well-trodden ground in countless books. His personal feelings about what it is like to see your dream slowly slipping away are underdeveloped and undercut when literally all is made good by a chance trip to an Eric Clapton concert. A ghost-writer, who could properly arrange his experiences to make this reconciliation more effective, would have served TR and his publisher well.
This book is a good companion to Sean Pronger's fabulous (and far superior) Journeyman tome. A fan of hockey will definitely gain a couple of hilarious anecdotes to whip out after cracking the 7th beer during the Saturday late game when the Doritos are all gone. Just don't expect a cerebral, Ken Dryden-type, level of insight into the game despite TR's attempts to convince you otherwise.
January 16, 2015
Felt like 200 pages of sitting next to some drunk in a dive bar telling you about his time when he was "good at da hackey"
This could have been much, much better if he had even just hired someone to edit the book.
This could have been much, much better if he had even just hired someone to edit the book.
May 23, 2019
Wow! What a tough one to rate! He's certainly seems honest judging by the stories he's willing to tell and his own self deprication. The book is a pretty easy read. While not a vital, i-must-find-out-what-happens-next! type of book, the stories are generally entertaining and short enough that picking up the book and putting it down five minutes later is possible without losing any semblance of story. My only real issue with it is I just don't know if I like this guy! 😁 I guess that's not a prerequisite for the book to be good though, is it? He seems like the stereotypical hockey jock. He uses hockey lingo like "biscuits" and "twigs" and calls everybody "Wolfy" or "Nails" or whatever. I'm sure it's natural to him, I'm just not a fan of it. I feel like if he told me these stories in a bar, I'd be rolling my eyes a lot. Maybe that's my problem? Some of the stuff he says I just outright disagree with. Sometimes he'll actually contradict himself one sentence after another: one sentence... Describes a guy who's a leader in the room, makes a speech, goes to war, etc. You gotta have these guys to win! Next sentence... Our team was garbage that year and lost a ton of games. 🤔
Anyway, these little annoying things (to me) weren't enough to get me to stop reading, so it couldn't have been that bad. The book is a very good look at "inside hockey" and the life of a player. Definitely more interesting than a lot of superstar sports biographies.
Anyway, these little annoying things (to me) weren't enough to get me to stop reading, so it couldn't have been that bad. The book is a very good look at "inside hockey" and the life of a player. Definitely more interesting than a lot of superstar sports biographies.
May 25, 2023
I wish I understood hockey now
I 1st learned about terry Ryan watching the Letterkenny spin-off, Shoresy. When I learned Terry had written a book, I thought I would check it out, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
As a professional writer and storyteller myself, I always appreciate the memoirs by athletes and entertaiers looking back at their careers and telling the stories they usually share with their friends and family.
Reading these stories made me wish I had paid more attention to hockey in my younger years. Still, these are great stories and I would love to hear more. So I was pleased to learn that Terry has another book out, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he has been doing since the publication of this book.
I 1st learned about terry Ryan watching the Letterkenny spin-off, Shoresy. When I learned Terry had written a book, I thought I would check it out, and thoroughly enjoyed it.
As a professional writer and storyteller myself, I always appreciate the memoirs by athletes and entertaiers looking back at their careers and telling the stories they usually share with their friends and family.
Reading these stories made me wish I had paid more attention to hockey in my younger years. Still, these are great stories and I would love to hear more. So I was pleased to learn that Terry has another book out, and I'm looking forward to seeing what he has been doing since the publication of this book.
October 20, 2023
I'm not the biggest hockey fan or anything but I do enjoy the sport.
I Grew up in the 90's in toronto, the leafs were good so it was fun to watch them.
I Never knew of Terry Ryan, I encountered him on Spittin' Chiclets and the guy was hilarious.
I heard him on some other podcast/youTube talk about fighting Domi thrice and it was a laugh. Someone on the pod mentioned he told the story in his book. I've been out of reading for a bit so I thought this would be a decent book to get back into reading.
This book is bad. I commend Terry for writing this book himself, or at least hope he did without the help of a ghost writer, but this is a shining example of people who write what they say as opposed to writing how they talk. They're not the same thing.
You can't just write down all of the things you say. It doesn't come across in writing the same way as it does spoken out loud. Just read one of trumps speeches transcribed and you get a better idea what I mean. It's not like Trump is a great orator (debatable I guess but he's trash)
When you read his speeches transcribed he comes across as challenged.
Terry's not that bad, but he ain't good.
And having heard Terry speak, he can be pretty captivating if not just a bit meandering. His metaphors and phrases and pacing are funny. His island cadence is charming and sing songy.
On paper it falls flat. Even though i could read most of the book in his voice there was still a literary element missing that just made the whole thing blah.
All of his tales are juvenile and silly and seemed to be missing the guidance of a real writer helping to tie things together. It's like he wrote the book solely to mention all of the people he grew up with. There's no underlying theme and while he does grow as an individual (Apparently) there doesn't really seem to be a real reason for this book. His reverence for amateur sport and it's place in society is admirable, but ultimately i found myself just wanting it to be over.
He just shoehorns in how he married a widowed friend whom he knew and grew up with and took on their son and now has a daughter with her?!? Dude that's book material right there. That tells me more about you as a man then any of these puerile tales of grab ass and homoeroticism. (I take off my shirt! Whoo! I kissed a tranny! Aw Shucks!)
That little sliver gives him so much character and so much to be admired. He has to eat shit after hockey and go work at the docks or as PA on movie sets. Buddy! Talk about the ego and letting go and moving on instead of just stapling your friends face and bashing your face with a hammer!
The story behind the story.
But like whatever, do what you want. Who the hell am I.
Interestingly enough I would watch more interviews and conversations with him. I've learned he's on Shorsey and while I've never seen it I did do the first few seasons of Letterkenny back when it came out so I might give it a shot just to see what that's all about, but this wasn't what i was hoping for.
Terry seems like a Decent guy. this is a Bad book.
I Grew up in the 90's in toronto, the leafs were good so it was fun to watch them.
I Never knew of Terry Ryan, I encountered him on Spittin' Chiclets and the guy was hilarious.
I heard him on some other podcast/youTube talk about fighting Domi thrice and it was a laugh. Someone on the pod mentioned he told the story in his book. I've been out of reading for a bit so I thought this would be a decent book to get back into reading.
This book is bad. I commend Terry for writing this book himself, or at least hope he did without the help of a ghost writer, but this is a shining example of people who write what they say as opposed to writing how they talk. They're not the same thing.
You can't just write down all of the things you say. It doesn't come across in writing the same way as it does spoken out loud. Just read one of trumps speeches transcribed and you get a better idea what I mean. It's not like Trump is a great orator (debatable I guess but he's trash)
When you read his speeches transcribed he comes across as challenged.
Terry's not that bad, but he ain't good.
And having heard Terry speak, he can be pretty captivating if not just a bit meandering. His metaphors and phrases and pacing are funny. His island cadence is charming and sing songy.
On paper it falls flat. Even though i could read most of the book in his voice there was still a literary element missing that just made the whole thing blah.
All of his tales are juvenile and silly and seemed to be missing the guidance of a real writer helping to tie things together. It's like he wrote the book solely to mention all of the people he grew up with. There's no underlying theme and while he does grow as an individual (Apparently) there doesn't really seem to be a real reason for this book. His reverence for amateur sport and it's place in society is admirable, but ultimately i found myself just wanting it to be over.
He just shoehorns in how he married a widowed friend whom he knew and grew up with and took on their son and now has a daughter with her?!? Dude that's book material right there. That tells me more about you as a man then any of these puerile tales of grab ass and homoeroticism. (I take off my shirt! Whoo! I kissed a tranny! Aw Shucks!)
That little sliver gives him so much character and so much to be admired. He has to eat shit after hockey and go work at the docks or as PA on movie sets. Buddy! Talk about the ego and letting go and moving on instead of just stapling your friends face and bashing your face with a hammer!
The story behind the story.
But like whatever, do what you want. Who the hell am I.
Interestingly enough I would watch more interviews and conversations with him. I've learned he's on Shorsey and while I've never seen it I did do the first few seasons of Letterkenny back when it came out so I might give it a shot just to see what that's all about, but this wasn't what i was hoping for.
Terry seems like a Decent guy. this is a Bad book.
October 18, 2023
This book was a hard slog, even for a huge hockey fan like me. He gets a bonus star for trying, but he really should’ve found a decent ghostwriter or editor. Many of the stories were probably a lot funnier if you were along for the ride and drunk, but for the average reader, they’re going to sound juvenile. Many of the anecdotes revolve around the author in various states of nakedness and it gets old quickly.
I gave him a bonus star for calling our Red Fisher. I only had one dealing with the journalist: I was doing some marketing for Canada Post and approached him in the press box to say hello. He was a total jerk, ignoring my outstretched hand and giving me a look like I was beneath him. Not surprised he was a dick to others.
I gave him a bonus star for calling our Red Fisher. I only had one dealing with the journalist: I was doing some marketing for Canada Post and approached him in the press box to say hello. He was a total jerk, ignoring my outstretched hand and giving me a look like I was beneath him. Not surprised he was a dick to others.
October 25, 2020
3.5 stars. Laugh out loud funny and super cringy all in one fun, fast, furious read. Terry is Letterkenney before there was Letterkenney. This is not Tolstoy; don't read it for the prose. This is a hilarious night of beers at a NFLD kitchen party with a bunch of hockey players...Terry has enough stories for an entire team!
July 23, 2023
I absolutely loved this book. Due in part to the fact I’ve seen Terry Ryan play when he was with the Bentley Generals and also because there is more to the story than just the stories and anecdotes. He’s resilient, smart, witty, and a great wordsmith. If you are the slightest hockey fan at all and love some great yarns, read this book.
August 31, 2023
Started to read this and got about a sixth of the way through (I was reading a ebook version) when I gave up. Ryan tells a lot of not very funny stories about pranks and hi-jinks during his junior hockey years, and I could tell that it wasn't going to get much better. Many people seem to have liked it, so maybe just not for me, but I didn't see the appeal.
July 30, 2017
Great hockey read, especially if you are a current or former hockey player that played at a junior or higher level. Definitely a cautionary tale for all of you super parents out there. I believe I played against Terry in the SPHL, those were some fun years!
January 24, 2023
On my list for awhile, I had never heard of Terry Ryan. Hard to believe that the Habs misjudged this talent so bad,y but things were different back in the 90s.
I don’t remember the level of violence that is apparent in this book but then again, I didn’t play anywhere near this level
I don’t remember the level of violence that is apparent in this book but then again, I didn’t play anywhere near this level
January 14, 2024
Great stories and anecdotes from an incredibly interesting individual. I implore you to look up TR on YouTube and watch him tell some of these stories if for nothing else than to have the ability to read and hear them in his voice
February 7, 2018
Had some interesting anecdotes but felt a bit slow at times.
July 8, 2018
Great hockey book. One of my favourite. Really captures what it’s like to be one of the boys.
January 27, 2020
Easy to read with nice small stories.
April 4, 2020
Light, fun read. Perfect when you miss the game.
October 18, 2022
Was just ok… wanted and was hoping for more!
April 14, 2024
As someone who can watch almost any hockey game I see on, I really appreciate this book. Terry is as much a fan of the game and its traditions as any super fan out there.
September 22, 2024
Really fun read.
February 15, 2025
fantastic
I loved this book so much. Now adding Terry to the list of athletes I’d love to have a beer with.
I loved this book so much. Now adding Terry to the list of athletes I’d love to have a beer with.
March 4, 2025
I am definitely not a hockey fan and although there was a lot of name dropping of players, I’ve never heard of, it was still a nice read. It felt like I was having a beer with the writer.
December 3, 2025
a quick fun read especially if you like hockey
February 10, 2014
Read more at iSeeVines.com
Sometimes People Deserve Everything They Get. And I Say That in the Best Way Possible.
Terry Ryan, author of Tales of a First-Round Nothing: My Life as an NHL Footnote, was once a highly touted prospect for the Montreal Canadiens. I had requested this book via Netgalley, seeking out the Sports genre because it is something I love (Sports) but rarely read on paper (or in this case, eBook). I've never heard of Terry Ryan and I'm glad I had the chance to read about his life.
And Terry Ryan is right. His book includes all the stories he had from when was 14 moving from East to West (Newfoundland to BC - that is a long trek) and to now where he is 30 and playing in the senior hockey league. In between all these years, he played the role of the joker and cheerleader, rarely having a moment where he is not pranking someone or trying to find ways to gather the troops and rally them into a victory. (Probably someone that I would love to have watching my back but also party with... though probably not often because loud people drains me.)
I find the book a little too gloaty, but I guess that's the point of an autobiography. When you read the book, you won't believe some of the stories written nor the people he meets along the way. But as you continue, you realize that these stories are true and you can see how many people Terry have met, touched, and could call friends along his hockey journey. As his NHL career stalled, people from every corner of the world would find ways to help him finding the odd jobs in playing. Not to mention how he always end up with encounters of famous people, getting invited him up to the box seat for a concert by a legend, or strangers letting him crash there for a night or two.
People without a big heart would rarely find these opportunities (or letting the opportunity come to them) -- Terry would end up knowing Sam Roberts (of the famed Sam Roberts Band), fighting against Tie Domi, and befriending more than a handful of NHLers who he would still hang out from time to time.
I did find that the book was quite long (I don't think it helped when the Kindle app on my tablet had a percentage counter along with how long (hours and minutes) left in the book. While it was fun reading Terry's experience, I got bored by some of it since it seemed to be dragging at times. It also didn't help that the stories were out of order in most parts and for the life of me I couldn't recall where in the timeline the story I was reading currently was located.
It is too bad that he never had an integral role in the NHL but it seems like he made up for it by continuing to pursue his passion -- playing hockey no matter how big (Montreal) or small (Mount Pearl) the stage is.
Thanks for a good read, Terry.
Sometimes People Deserve Everything They Get. And I Say That in the Best Way Possible.
Terry Ryan, author of Tales of a First-Round Nothing: My Life as an NHL Footnote, was once a highly touted prospect for the Montreal Canadiens. I had requested this book via Netgalley, seeking out the Sports genre because it is something I love (Sports) but rarely read on paper (or in this case, eBook). I've never heard of Terry Ryan and I'm glad I had the chance to read about his life.
... if I had been an NHL star I probably couldn't get away with some of what lies between these covers
And Terry Ryan is right. His book includes all the stories he had from when was 14 moving from East to West (Newfoundland to BC - that is a long trek) and to now where he is 30 and playing in the senior hockey league. In between all these years, he played the role of the joker and cheerleader, rarely having a moment where he is not pranking someone or trying to find ways to gather the troops and rally them into a victory. (Probably someone that I would love to have watching my back but also party with... though probably not often because loud people drains me.)
I find the book a little too gloaty, but I guess that's the point of an autobiography. When you read the book, you won't believe some of the stories written nor the people he meets along the way. But as you continue, you realize that these stories are true and you can see how many people Terry have met, touched, and could call friends along his hockey journey. As his NHL career stalled, people from every corner of the world would find ways to help him finding the odd jobs in playing. Not to mention how he always end up with encounters of famous people, getting invited him up to the box seat for a concert by a legend, or strangers letting him crash there for a night or two.
People without a big heart would rarely find these opportunities (or letting the opportunity come to them) -- Terry would end up knowing Sam Roberts (of the famed Sam Roberts Band), fighting against Tie Domi, and befriending more than a handful of NHLers who he would still hang out from time to time.
I did find that the book was quite long (I don't think it helped when the Kindle app on my tablet had a percentage counter along with how long (hours and minutes) left in the book. While it was fun reading Terry's experience, I got bored by some of it since it seemed to be dragging at times. It also didn't help that the stories were out of order in most parts and for the life of me I couldn't recall where in the timeline the story I was reading currently was located.
It is too bad that he never had an integral role in the NHL but it seems like he made up for it by continuing to pursue his passion -- playing hockey no matter how big (Montreal) or small (Mount Pearl) the stage is.
Thanks for a good read, Terry.
January 1, 2015
The memoir/autobiography of Terry Ryan, a former first round draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens who never quite "panned out". Ryan recounts his playing career from Jr. Hockey through the NHL through the various levels of minor league play through his experience in the Sr. Leagues (really interesting to read how this level "works"). Rather than an outright chronology, this book is more a mash up of stories which frequently cross the border into exhibitionism ("hey look at me, my wit is dazzling and my exploits are hilarious"...negative to both). He relies on hockey jargon and uses nicknames with irritating frequency. Rappers could learn how to name check from him. Ryan's dredging up of some names from the past(I enjoyed the mention of Stan "The Captain" Drulia and Chris LiPuma, two former Atlanta Knights players from the early 1990s who I saw play on many occasions in the early 1990s), as wells the props he gives to the Hershey Bears and his discussion of this team's reverential following in Central PA were the highlights of the book for me. If you are a hockey fan, especially one who might be considered hardcore, you will probably enjoy this book...if you aren't, probably not so much,
December 31, 2014
This was a really fun read. "ToaFRN" can appeal to either a hockey fan, sports fan or Montreal Canadiens fan.
These memoirs chronicled TR from junior hockey to retirement. There were a lot of great vignettes, and insights into some of the game's current personalities (Michel Therrien, Shawn Thornton, Sheldon Souray) without degenerating in the tabloid nonsense of an autobiography such as "Juiced" by Jose Canseco.
These memoirs chronicled TR from junior hockey to retirement. There were a lot of great vignettes, and insights into some of the game's current personalities (Michel Therrien, Shawn Thornton, Sheldon Souray) without degenerating in the tabloid nonsense of an autobiography such as "Juiced" by Jose Canseco.
December 13, 2015
It was an interesting ride through the highs and lows of a professional hockey career. However, the book suffered from frat boy syndrome. I never heard of the guy before reading this book, so his sexual conquests, of nobody of importance, smack solely of boasting. I thought the book would be a interesting tale of life struggling through the minors and instead it was filled with his sex life. Sorry Terry, unless you had sex with someone important and are dishing dirt, I could care less.
July 22, 2014
Really 3 1/2 stars as this was an entertaining book. Full review can be seen at
http://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/201...
http://sportsbookguy.blogspot.com/201...
May 27, 2014
I could take it or leave it. As a hardcore hockey fan, I felt the stories were typical and as you would expect. Nothing mind blowing.
July 11, 2014
Loved all the stories. I love watching hockey. I've discovered that I also enjoy reading about as well.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews