When business gets in the way of hockey, it can drag you down.
But Sundre’s Austin Fyten isn’t letting contract negotiations and a change of address get in the way of his hockey success.
Completing his first full season with the American Hockey League’s Oklahoma City Barons, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound forward was cast adrift by the Edmonton Oilers premier farm franchise in the spring.
“It was awesome. I had a great time,” said Fyten, 23, staying in shape for the upcoming hockey season skating with the NXT Level P3 hockey camp at Spray Lake Sawmills Family Sports Centre. He was flying up and down the ice alongside Cochrane Generals like Corey Goesen and Talus Hume. “I had a good experience. Lots of playing time. I had a great opportunity. I put up some points and finished well down the stretch. I was really happy with it.”
Deep with young forwards and Edmonton Oilers draft picks, OKC wasn’t compelled to re-sign Fyten at the end of the season.
“They’re developing guys and they’re working on that,” he said of the deluge of prospects Edmonton is shipping to its OKC farm club. “Obviously, Edmonton is bringing more guys up and they’re pretty young.”
When the music stopped, there wasn’t a stall left for him in the Barons dressing room, despite a productive 47-game campaign netting seven goals, 13 assists and a +7 rating. He played an additional 15 games with the East Coast Hockey League’s Idaho Steelheads, carding nine goals and six assists in 15 games.
He’s trying to negotiate a standard AHL deal with other clubs, but won’t divulge the teams due to ongoing contract talks.
“I’m in the midst of some contract negotiations right now,” he offered. “It’s in the AHL.
“I’m looking at a contract there (AHL) and that’s probably where I’ll end up.”
He remains positive because he has to. He aims to have something firmed up “in a week or two.”
“It came down to a decision between me and a couple of other guys and they stuck with their guys that they originally went with,” he rationalized of OKC’s decision not to re-sign him. He’s not going to let the business ruin his game.
