Calgary Flames assign Oliver Kylington to AHL for conditioning assignment

Kylington, 26, has missed the past season and a half with the Flames due to personal reasons. Now practicing with the Flames’ AHL team, the Calgary Wranglers, it appears that this is the first step to get Kylington back into game shape and eventually see him return to the lineup.

“I feel I’m in a good place with my mental health and ready to take another step forward,” said Kylington in a statement released by the Flames. “Returning to Calgary has been the right decision. I’ve felt tremendous commitment from Flames ownership, management, and my teammates, and I am appreciative of the support and resources made available to me. I also thank my family, friends, and the fans for their encouragement. I’m looking forward to getting on the ice in a team environment and back to my everyday life. I have missed it very much.”

Kylington had a career year the last time he last played hockey, as he had 9 goals and 22 assists for 31 points in 73 games in the 2021-22 season. Those totals were not only career-highs, but almost tripled his career totals going into the season, having just 5 goals and 11 assists for 16 points in 90 games beforehand.

Kylington was a second-round pick for the Flames in the 2015 NHL Draft, and has spent the entirety of his seven-season professional career in the Flames organization. He’s in the final year of a two-year contract with a $2.5 million cap hit, one he signed in the 2022 offseason before his leave of absence. That contract has not slid due to his time away and will still make him an unrestricted free agent this summer.

The Flames will look to build on back-to-back wins when they take on the Nashville Predators on Thursday at 8 p.m. EST. They currently sit in sixth in the Pacific Division with a 16-16-5 record, and are three points behind the Arizona Coyotes for the final wild card spot in the Western Conference.