Vancouver Canucks - The glory that is Rick Rypien

My latest Canucks post on Penaltykill.net is up, about the fiesty scrapper Rick Rypien.  He's quickly become a fan favourite here in Vancouver, mainly for his refusal to back down from anybody.

"You need many different types of hockey players on a team for it to be good. Of course, you need some guys who can put the puck in the net. You need forwards that can check the other team’s best players. You need an at least decent goalie, and you need both defensemen who can move the puck as well as those who can shut down the other team’s guys (even better if those qualities reside in the same defenseman).

But you also need some energy guys. You need guys who can play a good shift, hopefully keep the puck in the opposing team’s end, and who can get the crowd (and their teammates) energized with either a big hit, a fight, or whatever. It also helps to have a tough guy that can keep your star players safe by taking on the other team’s tough guy. The Vancouver Canucks thought they had this when they signed Darcy Hordichuk, but something’s happened to him. He doesn’t fight any more; he doesn’t really hit, and when he does try, he often misses. Tanner Glass has earned his spot on the Canucks by doing a lot of this, and I’m really glad to have him on this team. However, he’s not the guy I think of when I look at all of these qualities."

Believe me, I do mention Rypien right after that.  Go read it and tell me what you think!  Especially you Canucks fans who I know check this blog.