# Ryan VandenBussche

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Canadian ice hockey player (born 1973)

Ice hockey player

Ryan VandenBussche Born (1973-02-28) February 28, 1973 (age 53) Simcoe, Ontario, Canada Height 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) Weight 202 lb (92 kg; 14 st 6 lb) Position Right wing Shot Right Played for New York Rangers Chicago Blackhawks Pittsburgh Penguins NHL draft 173rd overall, 1992 Toronto Maple Leafs Playing career 1993–2007

**Ryan VandenBussche** (born February 28, 1973) is a Canadian former professional [ice hockey](/source/Ice_hockey) [forward](/source/Forward_(ice_hockey)) who played fourteen years of professional hockey, nine [National Hockey League](/source/National_Hockey_League) (NHL) seasons with the [New York Rangers](/source/New_York_Rangers), [Chicago Blackhawks](/source/Chicago_Blackhawks), and [Pittsburgh Penguins](/source/Pittsburgh_Penguins). He is best known for his [pugilistic](/source/Boxing) skills.

## Playing career

Drafted by the [Toronto Maple Leafs](/source/Toronto_Maple_Leafs) in the [1992 NHL entry draft](/source/1992_NHL_entry_draft), 8th round, 173rd overall, VandenBussche spent his first [seasons](/source/Season_(sport)) playing for various [OHL](/source/Ontario_Hockey_League) and [AHL](/source/American_Hockey_League) teams.

On August 22, 1995, he was signed as an unrestricted free agent by the [New York Rangers](/source/New_York_Rangers). After two seasons in the AHL with the Rangers' farm team, the [Binghamton Rangers](/source/Binghamton_Rangers), VandenBussche finally made his NHL debut for the [1996–97](/source/1996%E2%80%9397_NHL_season) season playing 11 games.

The very next season, [1997–98](/source/1997%E2%80%9398_NHL_season), VandenBussche was split between four different teams in three different leagues. He played three games for the [Indianapolis Ice](/source/Indianapolis_Ice) of the [IHL](/source/International_Hockey_League_(1945%E2%80%932001)), fifteen games for the [Hartford Wolf Pack](/source/Hartford_Wolf_Pack) of the AHL, sixteen games for the New York Rangers of the NHL, and since the Rangers traded him for [Ryan Risidore](/source/Ryan_Risidore) on March 29, 1998, four games for the [Chicago Blackhawks](/source/Chicago_Blackhawks) of the NHL.

VandenBussche remained a Blackhawk until the [Pittsburgh Penguins](/source/Pittsburgh_Penguins) signed him as an unrestricted free agent on July 12, 2004. On September 25, 2006, [Jokerit](/source/Jokerit) of [SM-liiga](/source/SM-liiga) signed the forward for a try-out, which was terminated on November 5. After his tryout, VandenBussche signed with the [New Mexico Scorpions](/source/New_Mexico_Scorpions) as a player/coach, but retired in January for medical reasons.[1]

VandenBussche was not known as a goal scorer or play maker; in 310 NHL games, he scored 10 goals and 10 assists. VandenBussche's role was as an [enforcer](/source/Enforcer_(ice_hockey)). He has the distinction of being pound for pound one of the toughest enforcers at the NHL level, and the man who ended the career of [Nick Kypreos](/source/Nick_Kypreos) in a pre-season game in 1997.[2][3]

## Post career

In 2006 VandenBussche was charged with assault after he assaulted multiple officers and uttered death threats. He was cleared of the charges in 2008 due to a successful argument that his multiple concussions during his hockey career and a shove during the altercation rendered him a "non-insane automaton".[4] VandenBussche and his wife Lisa currently sell real estate with his father Ron as Team VandenBussche with ReMax Erie Shores in [Norfolk County, Ontario](/source/Norfolk_County%2C_Ontario), Canada. Ryan is the founder of a charity called Stix n Pix which promotes the development of grass-roots hockey and music within the community and surrounding area.[5] He has also partnered with [Canadian Tire](/source/Canadian_Tire) First Shift Program, which is an initiative to help get youth involved in hockey.[6] VandenBussche is also the founder/President of New Leaf Canada Inc. which is a Nutraceutical Health and Wellness company. His role as an athlete ambassador advocates the benefits of plant based medicines.

VandenBussche was awarded the civilian [Canadian Forces Medallion for Distinguished Service](/source/Canadian_Forces_Medallion_for_Distinguished_Service) in 2017 for his multiple visits to overseas military bases, starting with a ball hockey game in [Kandahar](/source/Kandahar), [Afghanistan](/source/Afghanistan) in 2010.[7]

## Career statistics

Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1989–90 Norwich Merchants NDJHL 21 12 10 22 146 — — — — — 1990–91 Cornwall Royals OHL 49 3 8 11 139 — — — — — 1991–92 Cornwall Royals OHL 61 13 15 28 230 6 0 2 2 9 1992–93 St. John's Maple Leafs AHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1992–93 Newmarket Royals OHL 30 15 12 27 161 — — — — — 1992–93 Guelph Storm OHL 29 3 14 17 99 5 1 3 4 13 1993–94 St. John's Maple Leafs AHL 44 4 10 14 124 — — — — — 1993–94 Springfield Indians AHL 9 1 2 3 29 5 0 0 0 16 1994–95 St. John's Maple Leafs AHL 53 2 13 15 239 3 0 0 0 17 1995–96 Binghamton Rangers AHL 68 3 17 20 240 4 0 0 0 9 1996–97 Binghamton Rangers AHL 38 8 11 19 133 — — — — — 1996–97 New York Rangers NHL 11 1 0 1 30 — — — — — 1997–98 Indianapolis Ice IHL 3 1 1 2 4 — — — — — 1997–98 Hartford Wolf Pack AHL 15 2 0 2 45 — — — — — 1997–98 New York Rangers NHL 16 1 0 1 38 — — — — — 1997–98 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 4 0 1 1 5 — — — — — 1998–99 Portland Pirates AHL 37 4 1 5 119 — — — — — 1998–99 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 6 0 0 0 17 — — — — — 1998–99 Indianapolis Ice IHL 34 3 10 13 130 — — — — — 1999–00 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 52 0 1 1 143 — — — — — 2000–01 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 64 2 5 7 146 — — — — — 2001–02 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 50 1 2 3 103 1 0 0 0 0 2002–03 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 22 0 0 0 58 — — — — — 2002–03 Norfolk Admirals AHL 4 0 1 1 5 — — — — — 2003–04 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 65 4 1 5 120 — — — — — 2004–05 Wilkes–Barre/Scranton Penguins AHL 23 4 7 11 77 11 2 2 4 11 2005–06 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 20 1 0 1 42 — — — — — 2006–07 Jokerit SM-l 15 0 0 0 39 — — — — — 2006–07 New Mexico Scorpions CHL 9 0 3 3 29 — — — — — AHL totals 292 28 62 90 1011 23 2 2 4 53 NHL totals 310 10 10 20 702 1 0 0 0 0

## References

1. **[^](#cite_ref-1)** ["VandenBussche retires"](http://www.scorpionshockey.com/news/pressrelease/index.html?article_id=407). scorpionshockey.com. 2006-09-20. Retrieved 2008-11-10.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-2)** ["Kypreos, VandenBussche on concussions"](http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/kypreos-vandenbussche/). *sportsnet.ca*. March 25, 2011. Retrieved February 12, 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-3)** Campbell, Morgan (March 10, 2011). ["A history of violence"](https://www.thestar.com/sports/hockey/2011/03/10/a_history_of_violence.html). The Toronto Star. Retrieved February 12, 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-4)** Oliveira, Michael (July 11, 2008). ["Former NHL enforcer cleared of assault charges"](https://www.thestar.com/sports/2008/07/11/former_nhl_enforcer_cleared_of_assault_charges.html). The Toronto Star. Retrieved April 30, 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-5)** ["Simcoe real estate"](http://www.youronlineagents.com/ronvandenbussche/). youronlineagents.com. 2007-03-20. Retrieved 2008-11-10.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-6)** Robinson, Jacob (January 30, 2018). ["Local skaters on Cloud 9"](http://www.simcoereformer.ca/2018/01/30/local-skaters-on-cloud-9). *simcoereformer.ca*. Retrieved February 12, 2018.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-7)** Robinson, Jacob (24 January 2017). ["VandenBussche honoured by Canadian Forces"](http://www.simcoereformer.ca/2017/01/24/vandenbussche-honoured-by-canadian-forces). Simcoe Reformer. Retrieved 11 February 2017.

## External links

- Biographical information and career statistics from [NHL.com](https://www.nhl.com/player/8459109), or [Eliteprospects.com](https://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=8836&lang=en), or [Hockey-Reference.com](https://www.hockey-reference.com/players/v/vandery01.html), or [The Internet Hockey Database](https://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=5542)

- [Biography at Pittsburgh Penguins Official Website](http://www.pittsburghpenguins.com/team/bio.php?id=148)

- [tsn.ca](http://tsn.ca/nhl/teams/players/bio/?id=346&hubname=nhl-penguins)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Ryan VandenBussche](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_VandenBussche) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryan_VandenBussche?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.