Caps Having a Real Blast With Biron on Power Play

Until recently, Mathieu Biron was the Washington Capitals' odd man out. Although he practiced with the team, traveled with the team, even warmed up before games with the team, when the Capitals came out for the opening faceoff, the 25-year-old most times wore a designer suit and tie, not skates, pads and a helmet.

It wasn't an ideal situation for the player or the team. So Coach Glen Hanlon and his staff did something about it last week: Instead of using Biron's shortcoming (defensive zone play) as a reason to keep him in the press box, they found a creative use for his strength (a hard slap shot) and put him on the ice.

Biron, a defenseman by trade, has suited up the past two games as a fourth line forward and point man on the team's struggling power play. He's rewarded Hanlon with a pair of goals and an assist, all on the power play, in back-to-back victories over the Atlanta Thrashers and Montreal Canadiens. Biron's goals came on one-time slap shots from beyond the faceoff circles.

"I don't know if you can call it a second chance," Biron said before last night's practice at the Gardens Ice House in Laurel. "I look at it as finding your spot on the team. Obviously the power play is clicking right now. And hopefully I'm part of the reason for that. It's helping me be valuable to the team."

Biron hopes to extend his scoring streak -- and more importantly, continue to earn his keep -- against the Boston Bruins, who visit MCI Center tonight.

"It was [assistant coach] Jay Leach who did it," Hanlon said of inserting Biron into the lineup. "After hours and hours of individual practice he said, 'You know [Biron] has the ability to bring something to the power play that is a key asset.' It's kind of interesting because you always picture this power-play specialist as being 5 foot 9. So [Biron] is not your prototypical 18th skater."

The Capitals' power play has languished at or near the bottom of the league in effectiveness all season, but in the past two games, the unit has scored a combined four times in 17 opportunities against the Thrashers and Canadiens. While it may be a stretch to say Biron is the sole reason for the improvement, the 6-foot-6 Quebec native did receive 14 minutes 14 seconds of power-play ice time in those games, which was more than any teammate, including leading scorer Alex Ovechkin. In fact, the overwhelming majority of Biron's playing time came when the Capitals enjoyed the man advantage. Biron joked that he might have invented a new position.

"I'm a fourth-line forward/power-play point man/defenseman," Biron said with a hearty laugh. "I think the league may have to come up with a new trophy for that."

"I know I have a good shot," he added. "That's no secret. Either you have one or you don't. This year I'm shooting the puck really well."

Biron's recent success represents a drastic turn of events for the 1998 first-round draft pick, who made the Capitals, his fifth NHL team, out of training camp primarily because he was signed to a one-way contract, which means he can't be sent to the minors. He had played just twice in 17 games before suiting up against the Thrashers last Thursday. Depressed over his lack of playing time, Biron often called his older brother, Sabres goalie Martin Biron, for advice and an occasional pep talk. Martin Biron struggled early this season, but now is one of the league's hottest players.

"We kind of went through the same thing," Mathieu Biron said. "We are a really positive family. That's what we are known for back home. I just tried to stay positive and upbeat through it all and hoped good things were going to happen."

Playing Biron has had two positive side effects: The Capitals can keep 11 forwards on the roster instead of 12, and it allows Hanlon to occasionally double-shift the team's best player, Ovechkin, at even strength. Against the Canadiens, Ovechkin twice took Biron's place on the fourth line, skating alongside Andrew Cassels and Brian Willsie.

Biron is fully aware that he must continue to produce if he is to avoid more nights watching from the press box. He hopes that by playing well in his new role, he might earn another shot at cracking the team's defensive rotation.

"Just being in the lineup is positive," Biron said. "I want to prove to the coach that I can manage whatever situation he asks me to do."