CALGARY — Oliver Kylington skated with a small group of Calgary Flames players on Friday, making his first appearance with the team in over a year.
Kylington missed all of last season, and the first 23 games of this season, dealing with personal issues.
And while the hope is the 26-year-old defenceman may soon be preparing for a return to the NHL, coach Ryan Huska made it clear there is no timeline in place.
“There is nothing imminent there, but it was a good feeling for us to see him around the room today,” said Huska of the speedy Swede.
“That’s really what it’s about.
“We haven’t seen much of him lately, so it’s nice to see him back, skating with a small group of guys.
“We’re all hopeful he can continue to progress as we go, but there’s no timeline.”
Kylington’s appearance comes one day after the Flames traded defenceman Nikita Zadorov to Vancouver for third- and fifth-round draft picks.
His eventual return would do well to replace Zadorov, but Huska wouldn’t get into the shape Kylington is in.
“He’s doing what he has to do in order to get himself into a great spot, and that’s all we care about is him as a person, first and foremost,” he said.
“So, I can’t give you a lot in terms of how he’s feeling or what he’s going through.
“He’s skated on his own at times — not something that has been a regular occurrence at all.”
Kylington did not speak to the media.
Kylington had a breakout season two years ago, when he had nine goals and 31 points in 73 games for the Flames.
“It was great seeing him here this morning. I was super-excited when I heard yesterday he was coming in,“ said Flames captain Mikael Backlund, who said he hadn’t seen him in over a month.
“He looked like he was doing really well and was really happy to be here.”
“We’ve kept in touch the whole time — it’s easy sending texts, and we talked on the phone a couple times last year.
“When he came here just before camp, I had him over and it was too bad, we were all excited and thought he was going to come back right away then, but it’s a process.”