Simon Gysbers

Playing career

Simon Gysbers got his start in junior hockey with the Stouffville Spirit in the Ontario Junior Hockey League during the 2003-04 season, and he stayed with that club for three years. In his second season, he was recognized as the league's top defenseman. The following year, he took home the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League's Defenseman of the Year award after putting up eight goals and 24 assists for the Spirit in 2005-06. That same season, he helped Stouffville capture the OPJHL North/West Conference title with a 26-10-9 record and earned a spot in the Canadian Junior A all-star game. Heading into the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, he was slotted at 153rd on the Central Scouting List.

From 2006-07 onward, Gysbers played college hockey for Lake Superior State University in the CCHA. He shared the Soo BlueLiners Outstanding Freshman Award with teammate Nathan Perkovich and placed second among Lakers rookies in scoring. During the CCHA playoffs, he ranked fourth on the team in points despite sitting out one of seven games with an injury. He notched his first two collegiate points in a 7-6 overtime win at Ohio State, and his first career goal came in a 3-2 overtime victory over Nebraska-Omaha. In the first round of the CCHA playoffs against Ferris State, he scored a goal in each of the three games. He also finished second among Lakers defensemen in plus-minus with a +5 rating.

On March 14, 2010, the Toronto Marlies brought Gysbers in on an amateur try-out contract. During the 2011-12 regular season, he led the Marlies' defense in scoring. In Game 5 of the AHL Western Conference Finals, he netted the go-ahead goal to break a 1-1 tie, a tally widely seen as the biggest of his AHL career, pushing the Marlies into the Calder Cup Final. He signed a one-year extension with the Maple Leafs on July 17, 2012.

After spending parts of four seasons in the Maple Leafs organization, Gysbers became a free agent and moved overseas. On August 7, 2013, he inked a one-year deal with Ilves of the Finnish Liiga. When that season ended, he switched to another Finnish club, HC TPS, signing on May 5, 2014.