Congrats to Montreal Canadiens Cole Caufield on his tremendous contract accomplisment and to all the other small players who didn't let a lack of height get in their way.

On Monday morning, the Montreal Canadiens announced that they had signed forward Cole Caufield to an eight-year extension worth $62.8 million.

The 22-year-old former Wisconsin Badger fell to No. 15 at the 2019 NHL Draft, as despite his sniping ability, his 5'7, 174-lb frame was a concern. 

"Cole looks at where he was drafted and figures he had equal, if not more, talent than those picked before him. He figures those 14 teams ahead of the Canadiens went for bigger players, and that thought alone helps spur him on," Badger head coach Don Granato said during Montreal's run to the 2021 Stanley Cup Final (H/T NHL.com). 

"I think just proving people wrong is something that I'm just going to continue to do," Caufield said during that run (H/T NHL.com). 

With the contract extension, the shortest player in the NHL will be tasked with playing a vital role in getting Montreal back to greatness.

For many, Montreal's contract announcement for Caufield doesn't mean much.

But for athletes like myself and other short athletes and kids out there, seeing what Caufield has done and seeing the hard work paying off -- it's inspiring.

Growing up, like every kid who loved hockey, I had one goal: to play in the NHL. I started playing hockey in third grade,  putting on the oversized goaltender equipment while taking up maybe one-tenth of the net. 

As I got older -- and not taller -- reality set in early for me that accomplishing that NHL feat wasn't going to happen. But I loved the sport, I loved the position, and proving people wrong was a motivation not just in sports but in other aspects of life. 

At the age of 13, standing at barely 4'5, my family and I decided to start me on human-growth hormones, otherwise known as HGH. The original prognosis was that I would stand around 4'11, but the HGH could get me into the five-foot range. 

The scariness of my future didn't stop me from putting in the work to get as good as I could, despite being at a significant disadvantage. 

Although not my position, watching 5'8 Martin St. Louis growing up -- Caufield's current coach -- accomplish what he did in the NHL fueled this belief that I could overcome my lack of size. 

When it got time for high school, my father and I ran into the JV head coach of my town. Politely, he told me they weren't interested in a goalie of my size.

A punch to the gut, if you will. So, what did I do?

I decided to try out for the Varsity team instead. Did I make it my freshman or sophomore year?

Nope.

But I made Varsity my junior year, which felt like my NHL. Shoutout to my goaltender coach Chris Testa, who worked countless hours with me at 5 AM to get my skills to where they needed to be. 

Standing at a proud 5'9 today, I look back and am so thankful for players like St. Louis and others. Because it would have been easy for me to stop playing, something I often contemplated when I struggled between the pipes. 

I'm ultra-thankful I didn't pack it in because playing goalie, which I still do a couple of times a week, has me like a kid in a candy shop. The judgment from new teammates and opponents is still a thing, but that makes it sweeter when you go out there and prove people wrong, as Caufield does with Montreal. 

Today's NHL is much different than years past. The league was all about the big bodies, with a few outliers like the St. Louis, who went undrafted because of his size.

Now, younger, smaller athletes have players like Caufield, who plays in a significant NHL market, to look up to, amongst a handful of others. 

Brad Marchand, Jonathan Marchessault, and Johnny Gaudreau stand at 5'9,  while Mats Zuccarello, Alex DeBrincat, and Cam Atkinson measure out at 5'8.

The New York Islanders have a short prospect named Ruslan Iskhakov, whose height has been a subject since he was drafted in the second round (43rd overall) in 2018. 

The 5'8, 22-year-old is coming off his first AHL season, potting 17 goals and 34 assists for the Bridgeport Islanders in 69 games. His speed and hand-eye coordination were displayed during development camp and training camp before his first pro season in the United States. 

But the Russian forward did not get to play in any preseason games as he got banged up during the Islanders' blue and orange scrimmage at UBS Arena. 

Despite his All-Star season for Bridgeport, Iskhakov was one of the only prospects not to get a chance with the big club this season. It was clear that the organization did not feel Iskhakov was ready, so it will be interesting to see if he gets a chance to show that, despite his size, he can play in the NHL. 

If you are a parent of an athlete on the shorter side or are one yourself, I leave you with this quote from Yoda, which was my senior quote.

"Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hmm? Hmm. And well, you should not."

Congrats to Caufield on his tremendous accomplishment and all the other small players who didn't let a lack of height get in their way.