Ryan Gunderson

Did You Know?

• Gunderson was named to Team USA's roster for the 2018 Winter Olympics on January 1, 2018.
• He appeared in all five Olympic games as the United States finished in seventh place.

Playing career

Gunderson attended Holy Ghost Preparatory School in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, graduating in 2003. He still holds the school record for most points in a single regular season with 94 (26 goals and 68 assists). During his senior year, he led Holy Ghost to a Flyers Cup Championship and a second-place finish in the State Championship. He then played four years at the University of Vermont, where he holds the team record for most games played in a career with 148. He was inducted into the Holy Ghost Prep Athletic Hall of Fame in 2024. After college, Gunderson signed with the Columbia Inferno of the ECHL in March 2007, appearing in 12 games and recording 3 assists. Later in 2007, he signed with the Trenton Devils, the ECHL affiliate of the New Jersey Devils. In his rookie season, he tallied 22 points (2 goals, 20 assists) in his first 29 games and was selected as the lone Devils representative for the ECHL All-Star Game. He finished the season with 46 points (4 goals, 42 assists), leading all rookie defensemen and placing fourth among all rookies; his 42 assists ranked second among ECHL defensemen. He was named to the ECHL All Rookie Team for 2008. In the 2008–09 season, he set a team record for most assists in a season with 53 and most points by a defenseman with 58, earning a spot on the All-ECHL First Team after tying for the league lead in points by a defenseman. On April 9, 2008, he signed a professional tryout agreement with the Lowell Devils of the AHL, appearing in three games without recording a point. After three minor league seasons in North America, he moved abroad and signed with Swedish club Örebro HK of the HockeyAllsvenskan during the 2010–11 season.