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Bégin’s father stopped drinking more than 15 years ago.

“I always told my dad: ‘You’re my hero. I love you, you gave me good advice. But I don’t want to be like you. I don’t want this life, I want a better life,'” said Bégin, who now has two daughters — Méanne (13) and Maylia (11) — with his wife, Amélie, and a nice home in Candiac. “I always said since I was 6 years old that I wanted to play in the NHL and he always told me: ‘I know you’re going to make it. Just work hard.'”

It was his work ethic that got Bégin to the NHL, selected by the Calgary Flames in the second round (40th overall) at the 1996 NHL Draft. He played 524 career NHL games with the Flames, Canadiens, Dallas Stars, Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators, posting 56-52-108 totals and 561 penalty minutes.

“Everything comes from him,” Bégin said about his father. “He was probably one of the hardest-working guys that I’ve seen in my life. Yes, he had a few problems, alcohol problems, and we were on welfare. But he taught me a lot of things and that’s probably why I am who I am today. If I would have had everything that I wanted as a kid I probably wouldn’t have made it to the NHL. That’s probably what drove me to go higher and higher.”

Bégin said the five years he spent with the Canadiens after being claimed off waivers in the summer of 2003 were the best of his career. Bégin’s best offensive season came in 2005-06 when he posted 11-12-23 totals with 113 penalty minutes and became a fan favourite with his work ethic.