Rypien and Bieksa both on the mend

Conspiracy theorists relax: It’s not Kevin Bieksa’s heart that tore him away from the Vancouver Canucks over the weekend, it was his lungs.

The defenceman said after returning to practice today that he has pneumonia. It was merely a coincidence he suddenly left the National Hockey League team after his close friend, Rick Rypien, took an indefinite leave of absence related to mental health.

"We’ll see how tomorrow goes," Bieksa said. "I plan on practising tomorrow and plan on playing in Calgary [on Wednesday]. I’m on the homestretch, hopefully. I feel a lot better today than I did a few days ago."

The Canucks should know tomorrow whether third-line centre Manny Malhotra will be able to make the road trip to Calgary and Chicago. He missed practice this morning due to what coach Alain Vigneault said is the flu, which is also what Bieksa was supposed to be suffering from.

Bieksa, who left Monday’s workout before Vigneault ended it with a conditioning skate, said he had the flu during the Canucks’ tour through Eastern Canada three weeks ago. He doesn’t believe his illnesses are related.

"I don’t know if that is medically possible," he said. "One’s viral and one’s bacterial. I don’t know; I’m not a doctor. I shouldn’t even be telling you this because now I’m going to have to answer all these questions."

As one of Rypien’s best friends on the Canucks, he’ll also be asked a lot of questions in the coming weeks.

"He’s doing good," Bieksa said of Rypien, who left the Canucks Thursday. "He’s in the right hands right now. He’s got the support of his family and team and everyone behind him, and he’s getting better. Obviously, it’s not easy. Whatever it is has taken him away from the game he loves to play, and we miss him around here. He’s a great teammate and a great friend to me. We want him back as soon as possible."