Courtesy of Faceoff.com:
Leafs' Van Ryn to undergo season-ending surgery"TORONTO - Mike Van Ryn's time in Toronto is over.
The injury-plagued defenceman, who has missed 117 games in the past two seasons and has yet to play a game for the Maple Leafs this year, announced on Friday that he will undergo season-ending surgery to repair his badly injured knee.
But the 30-year-old Van Ryn said he is "confident" that his career is not finished.
"It's obviously been hard for me the last few years not playing," he said. "But I still I think I can play in the league. It's going to be a long road to come back. But like I said, there have been guys in the Olympics and stuff in the pinnacle of their sport and still performing. I think it's something that I can come back from."
For Van Ryn, Friday's announcement caps off a disappointing time in Toronto.
Acquired by the Leafs in exchange for Bryan McCabe in the summer of 2008, the London, Ont., native played just 27 games last season. This year, he briefly participated in training camp before the swelling in his left knee made it impossible for him to skate without pain."...There are some who have written that "that's all she wrote" - It's the end of his career.
It may well be, with the abundance of serviceable players who still remain without a contract, in today's NHL.
He'll be fighting an inexorable, uphill battle to try to make any squad, provided his surgery and rehab are successful...
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