BY WEB STAFF
sportsnet.ca
The winless Toronto Maple Leafs got more bad news on Friday when defenceman Mike Van Ryan announced that he will undergo season-ending surgery on his left knee.
Van Ryn is scheduled to have the realignment procedure, known as an osteotomy, next Thursday and will require six months of rehabilitation.
The Leafs defenceman, who has yet to play a game with Toronto this year, was still trying to recover from a MCL injury he suffered last season, but his knee was not responding well to treatment.
The surgery is the same one Steve Yzerman had in the fall of 2002 as a member of the Detroit Red Wings. Van Ryan said he spoke to Yzerman about the procedure and the former NHLer gave his encouragement.
The news also leaves Van Ryn’s future unclear. While the London, Ont., native said he hopes to play again next season, he is currently under the final year of his contract with the Leafs.
Injuries have limited Van Ryn to only 27 games with the Leafs since joining the club prior to the 2008-09 season in a trade that sent Bryan McCabe to the Florida Panthers.
In 353 career NHL games, Van Ryn has 30 goals and 99 assists. He was drafted 26th overall by the New Jersey Devils in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft.
