Vancouver Canucks head coach Willie Desjardins dropped a bombshell at the end of practice, revealing that Radim Vrbata, Alex Edler and Brandon Sutter have all been shut down for the season with varying injuries. Perhaps it was more a mighty-mite than a bombshell, given the relative insignificance of the games remaining and the inevitability of this announcement. Either way, it’s something.

All three players are suffering different ailments. Sutter, a broken jaw, and Edler, broken leg, suffered their injuries in a February 9th contest against the Colorado Avalanche. Although Edler had been enjoying good health and a relatively successful season amid the Canucks derailed campaign, it was easy enough to predict that his broken leg signaled the end. Sutter’s season, promising in glimpses as it was came with no such fortune on the medical front.

Vrbata’s injury was suffered more recently, during last Friday’s contest against the Edmonton Oilers. Although the play itself seemed innocent enough, Vrbata’s injury kept him from returning to that game or playing in Saturday’s contest against the St. Louis Blues.

Barring a blockbuster deal or unforeseen set of circumstances this summer, Sutter and Edler will be returning to the Canucks next season. Assuming everything remains constant, both will be healthy and full functioning NHL players in time for training camp. Vrbata seems less likely to return, as a pending UFA on the wrong side of thirty.

It’s been a tumultuous two-year run for Vrbata. In the space of a year he’s gone from team MVP to a player that returned no higher a yield than a late-round selection at the deadline. Here’s hoping for a rebound, in Vancouver or elsewhere.