Sad news out of the NHL today. 27 year old forward Rick Rypien has passed away.
Rypien, a heart and soul player for the Canucks for the past 6 seasons, took time off from the game close to the end of the 2010-2011 season to deal with some personal issues not related to substance abuse.
At 5'11 190lbs, Rypien was said to be undersized yet he took on players as big as Hal Gill, Boris Valabik, and Cam Janssen.
over Rypien's 119 game career, he got 9 goals, 7 assists for 16 points. he also accumulated 226 penalty minutes.
He is the second NHLer to pass away in the last 3 months. Both Rypien and Boogard will be missed, as there absence is felt throughout the hockey community.
Andrew MacDonald
@AMacAttack on twitter