Winnipeg Jets center Rick Rypien was found dead at his Alberta home on Monday, with police telling local media there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding the 27-year-old’s death.
Rypien signed a one-year, US$700,000 contract with the Jets as a free agent last month after six seasons with the Vancouver Canucks.
The Canadian had not played for the Canucks since last November when he took an indefinite leave of absence from the team for personal reasons.
Photo: Reuters
Rypien’s 2010-2011 campaign was marred by a six-game NHL suspension for an altercation with a fan in Minnesota in October.
“We would like to express our sincere sympathies to the Rypien family, as well as Rick’s friends,” the Jets said in a statement. “Rick was a talented player with an extremely bright future. His hunger for the game made him a valued team member both on and off the ice. This loss has impacted us as more than just a hockey team.”
The Canucks echoed the Jets’ sentiments.
“Rick has been a beloved member of the Canucks family for the past six years,” a statement read. “Rick was a great teammate and friend to our players, coaches and staff. We send our deepest condolences to the Rypien family at this most difficult time.”
Rypien began his professional career in Winnipeg with the Moose, the Canucks’ AHL affiliate, and the Jets gave him a chance to re-establish his career in his home province when he was signed last month.
Rypien is the second young NHL player to die in the off-season.
New York Rangers enforcer Derek Boogaard was found dead in May with a mixture of alcohol and the pain killer oxycodone in his system. A US medical examiner ruled the 28-year-old’s death accidental.
CROSBY STILL SUFFERING
REUTERS, NEW YORK
Sidney Crosby has had more of the post-concussion symptoms that bothered him in the spring, but the Pittsburgh Penguins said the center has not had to shut down his conditioning program in his bid to come back.
Penguins general manager Ray Shero told reporters on Monday that the symptoms occurred when Crosby stepped up his workouts ahead of the opening of the team’s training camp in the middle of next month.
Crosby, one of the NHL’s biggest draws, has not played since Jan. 5 when he absorbed his second shot to the head in as many games. The Canadian, the league’s leading scorer at the time, was bothered by headaches after the incidents and was shut down for the season and playoffs.
“The good news is he continues to work out and has worked out hard during the summertime,” Shero said in Pittsburgh, according to the NHL’s official Web site. “When he went back [to Nova Scotia], he has a progression plan with his trainer, Andy O’Brien, which he’s gone through and we’ll see where he is during training camp.”
Shero would not speculate whether Crosby would be ready for the start of camp or when he might be cleared for contact on the ice. Crosby must be symptom-free before he can resume contact, which is required before he can play in a game.
Playing without Crosby, Pittsburgh were knocked out by Tampa Bay in the first round of the playoffs last season.
Drafted first overall by Pittsburgh in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, the 24-year-old Crosby has lived up to the hype and his nickname of “Sir Sidney.”
He helped lead Pittsburgh to a Stanley Cup triumph in 2009 for their first title in 17 years and his overtime goal won the gold medal for Canada at last year’s Vancouver Olympics.
Since joining the Penguins for the 2005-2006 season, Crosby has been a points-producing machine and an NHL Most Valuable Player winner, recording 215 goals and 357 assists for 572 points in 412 regular-season games.
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