TORONTO - Paul Ranger is the Toronto Maple Leafs' nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, awarded for "perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to hockey."
Ranger returned to the NHL this season after a four-year absence. He abruptly left the Tampa Bay Lightning for personal reasons in October 2009, then played last year for the AHL's Toronto Marlies.
The 29-year-old Whitby, Ont., native signed a one-year deal with the Leafs in the off-season and then made the team out of training camp.
Ranger has four goals and eight assists in 49 games this season.
He left the ice on a stretcher after he was boarded by Tampa Bay's Alex Killorn during a game on March 19 but was not seriously hurt.
Goaltender James Reimer was the 2013 nominee, as chosen by the Toronto chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
