RIP Derek Boogaard

NewsCore - MINNEAPOLIS -- An autopsy was pending Saturday on the former Minnesota Wild and New York Rangers enforcer Derek Boogaard after he was found dead at his Minneapolis home.

Boogaard, 28, was discovered in his Warehouse District apartment by family members, according to the Hennepin County medical examiner's office.

Unfailingly cordial and very popular among his teammates and peers throughout the league, Boogaard had an unhappy season with the Rangers that was cut short after just 22 games when the winger suffered a concussion in a Dec. 9 fight in Ottawa with Matt Carkner.

He was signed to a four-year, $6.5 million free agent contract last summer based on his pugilistic exploits.

Boogaard, who completed the season with one goal, one assist, 45 penalty minutes and seven fights in 45 games, began to skate on his own toward the end of the season, but management sent him home with about a week remaining because of unspecified issues.

Rangers president and general manager Glen Sather nevertheless remained loyal to the 6'7", 265-pound winger, suggesting that the signing would become a positive one for the franchise.

Boogaard spent five years with the Wild before signing with the Rangers, developing a folk-hero like persona while engaging in 54 fights in 255 games. More than Marian Gaborik, his high-scoring teammate on both the Wild and in New York, Boogaard received a hero's welcome when both returned to Minnesota for the first time as Rangers on Nov. 20.

"Derek was an extremely kind and caring individual," Sather said in a statement released Friday night by the team. "He was a very thoughtful person who will be missed by all those who knew him. We extend our deepest sympathies to his family, friends and teammates during this difficult time."



RIP, my favorite wild player in recent memory.... but considering the team is only like eleven years old, i guess my favorite wild player.


Oh, and the wild suck