Vancouver re-signs one tough hombre...plus a list of the Nucks' UFAs, from The Province:
Canucks fourth line intact with Rypien signing
Jim Jamieson/Vancouver Province, May 28, 2009
Vancouver Canucks GM Mike Gillis clearly believes Rick Rypien’s problems — injuries and otherwise — are behind him.
Rypien, who would have become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, was signed to a two-year extension on Wednesday.
The new contract, which is a one-way deal, goes through the 2010-11 season.
Rypien wouldn’t say how much the deal is worth, but it’s believed to be a slight increase on the $522,000 annual salary he was making, likely in the $600,000 range.
Rypien, 25, has suffered numerous injuries since signing with the Canucks the fall of 2005.
He played just five games at the start of the past season before suffering a sports hernia.
That required surgery and he had a relapse, but Rypien remained sidelined indefinitely with an undisclosed personal issue.
By the time he returned to the lineup on March 31, he’d missed 70 games.
Gillis said in an interview from Toronto, where he’s attending the NHL Draft Combine, that he believes Rypien’s issues are behind him.
“We feel really good about him,” said Gillis. “He’s got good speed, he hits and he’s hard to play against. We need young players like that.”
Gillis said the team will be putting together a training program designed specifically for Rypien to help him avoid injury.
Rypien plays a tough, physical game and is a devastating fighter — a style that’s hard on a player who’s under-sized for that role, at 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds.
The question hanging over him has always been his ability to stay healthy.
But when Rypien returned in March he was able to play in the final seven games as well as all 10 playoff games.
He and his fourth-line mates were a factor in some of the playoff games against both St. Louis and Chicago.
“Vancouver approached me and we (signed a deal) right away,” said Rypien. “I’m more than happy with that. I didn’t want to play anywhere else but Vancouver. I feel probably the best I’ve felt health-wise. Hopefully, that’s the end of all that stuff.”
Rypien believes he can improve as a hockey player, but of course that’s dependent on staying off the IR.
“I just want to pick up where I left off,” he said. “I’m still pretty young so I think I can get better.”
Rypien’s signing means the Canucks’ fourth line will stay intact, as Darcy
Hordichuk and Ryan Johnson are both already under contract for next season.
In 41 career games as a Canuck, Rypien has recorded seven points (5-2-7) and 69 penalty minutes.
Canucks free agents
Forwards Mat Sundin (UFA) Daniel Sedin (UFA) Henrik Sedin (UFA) Taylor Pyatt (UFA) Kyle Wellwood (RFA) Jannik Hansen (RFA) Defence Mattias Ohlund (UFA) Rob Davison (UFA) Ossi Vaananen (UFA) Shane O’Brien (RFA) Goal Jason LaBarbera (UFA) UFA: Unrestricted free agent RFA: Restricted free agent
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