Taylor Fedun doesn’t have to be a hockey player. He’s a mechanical engineer which means he’ll never have to worry about making a good buck in the real world.
But the Oilers farmhand defenceman has given the AHL two seasons, played about 20 minutes a night in Oklahoma City, and now is out of work. The Oilers decided not to give him a qualifying offer to keep his rights Monday in a bit of a surprise, which means he’ll be in the free-agent marketplace July 1
They did qualify nine of their other 10 eligible restricted free-agents–Justin Schultz, Jeff Petry and Luke Gazdic off the NHL roster and Richard Bachman, Tyler Pitlick, Curtis Hamilton and Andrew Miller off the OKC team. They also qualified forward Roman Horak and D-man Philip Larsen who’ve signed to play overseas.
But not Fedun, who fashioned a gutsy comeback story after shattering his right leg when he crashed into the boards in an exhibition game in Minnesota at his first camp in 2011.
He missed all of the 2011-2012 hockey season after he’d signed as a college free-agent out of Princeton (his thesis project was building a hovercraft), but worked overtime to return.
Countless early-morning hours with therapist Dave (Fibber) Magee, baby steps, then stepping back onto the ice with a rod in his leg). He got into four NHL games last year, and scored twice, including back-to-back games in Florida and Tampa in early November, but Fedun lost the numbers’ game .
The Oilers have a surplus of younger defenders–Brandon Davidson, David Musil, Martin Gernat, Oscar Klefbom, Dillon Simpson, Jordan Oesterle. Fedun, a clever, puck-moving D-man, could have been in the mix for a 7-8 job at the NHL level, but the Oilers decided to go in another direction. Oesterle, a college signing this spring, plays a similar game to Fedun, which may have factored into the decision.
Fedun told TSN’s Jason Gregor he had no hard feelings.
“I was no longer in Edmonton’s plans which I respect, so I’m excited about a new opportunity to prove myself at the next level,” he said. “I enjoyed my time with Edmonton/OKC, met a lot of great people and matured as a player and a person.
“I have mixed feelings. I understand it’s a business but I have nothing but great things to say about Taylor,” said farmhand coach Todd Nelson. “He was a tremendous asset in the two years he was with me. I didn’t view the leg as a huge issue with us, at our level. He recovered from it and has a helluva lot of hockey left in him.”
The Oilers, in grading their prospects, probably saw Fedun as an NHL call-up, but not a regular, and at his age, thought he was too old at 26.
“The big club looks at Taylor and where he fits in the future; is he a bonafide NHLer or just a very good American Leaguer. Time will tell but I’m sure he’ll get an opportunity with somebody else,” said Nelson.
Hamilton, a second-round draft in 2010 (48th overall), has battled injuries, as has Pitlick, the 31st pick that draft.
Hamilton was on the fence to be resigned but opened some eyes late last season.
“Curtis is a big body and we’ve all wanted him to mature quicker on the ice but he was our best player against Texas in the playoffs. If he can bottle that and start where he left off, everybody in the organization will be very excited,” said Nelson.
Pitlick is certainly closer to being an NHLer, maybe a fourth-line winger. “He was a heckuva lot more mature last year than he’d been…his skating has always been good and when he plays a physical game and finishes his checks, he’s effective. But he’s had to learn to be consistent at that. This will be a huge camp for Tyler,” said Nelson.
“Curtis and Tyler fall into a category where they’ve played 145 games over three years because of injuries whereas a guy like Tomas Tatar with Detroit. He played 216 with Grand Rapids before he won an NHL spot,” he said.
