Rick Rypien
Rick Joseph Rypien (May 16, 1984 – August 15, 2011) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre. He played for the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL).
| Rick Rypien | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Rypien in 2009 | |||
| Born |
May 16, 1984 Blairmore, Alberta, Canada | ||
| Died |
August 15, 2011 (aged 27) Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, Canada | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 194 lb (88 kg; 13 st 12 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Vancouver Canucks Manitoba Moose | ||
| NHL Draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 2005–2011 | ||
He was a very tough player and used to play for the Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League (AHL), who were the Canucks partner in the AHL. Rypien played four seasons with the Regina Pats, a junior team in the Western Hockey League (WHL) before going to the Moose in 2005. The following season he started playing for the Canucks. He has been injured a lot in the NHL and has missed many games because of that.
He signed a one-year, $700,000 contract with the Winnipeg Jets but he died before training camp. His body was found in his home on August 15, 2011 by police. His death was later confirmed to be a suicide[1] Rypien had struggled with clinical depression throughout his career.[2]
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 2001–02 | Crowsnest Pass Timberwolves | AJHL | 57 | 12 | 10 | 22 | 143 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Regina Pats | WHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Regina Pats | WHL | 50 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 159 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 21 | ||
| 2003–04 | Regina Pats | WHL | 65 | 19 | 26 | 45 | 186 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 18 | ||
| 2004–05 | Regina Pats | WHL | 63 | 22 | 29 | 51 | 148 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2004–05 | Manitoba Moose | AHL | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 35 | ||
| 2005–06 | Manitoba Moose | AHL | 49 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 122 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 22 | ||
| 2005–06 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Manitoba Moose | AHL | 14 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 35 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2006–07 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2007–08 | Manitoba Moose | AHL | 34 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 81 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||
| 2007–08 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 22 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 41 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2008–09 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 12 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 19 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 40 | ||
| 2008–09 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 69 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 126 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | ||
| 2010–11 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 31 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 2010–11 | Manitoba Moose | AHL | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | ||
| NHL totals | 119 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 226 | 17 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 47 | ||||
| AHL totals | 116 | 16 | 23 | 39 | 252 | 40 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 77 | ||||
References
- "Hundreds attend funeral for NHLer Rick Rypien". The Globe and Mail. 2011-08-20. Archived from the original on 2016-11-07. Retrieved 2011-10-14.
- "Canucks honor deceased enforcer Rick Rypien". USA Today. Archived from the original on 2017-08-02. Retrieved 2014-10-06.
Other websites
- Rick Rypien career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database
- Rick Rypien player profile at NHL.com
- Rick Rypien biography at Legends of Hockey (archived)