By Noah Miller
Former Dinos hockey star Jared Aulin nabbed a tryout spot with the Columbus Blue Jackets after years of absence from pro hockey.
As a Dino, Aulin scored a remarkable 34 points in a mere 16 games leading the team on a second-half run during which they won 15 out of 18 games in the 2007-08 season. Aulin, who enjoyed a 17-game tenure with the Los Angeles Kings in 2003, was ecstatic at the opportunity to return to the big leagues.
“I’m excited about every opportunity that I’m given and I look forward to capitalizing on them and proving myself,” said Aulin, who captained the WHL’s Kamloops Blazers.
After finally recovering from a shoulder injury that came in the 2003-04 preseason, two years of kinesiology at the U of C and working at a popular downtown Calgary bar, Aulin was ready to be back in action.
According to a message relayed by Aulin’s fan page, camp was going “really well” and Aulin was “getting better every day.”
However, Aulin’s return to the NHL will have to wait just a little bit longer. According to an article in the Columbus Dispatch, Aulin was released from his tryout agreement with the Jackets and invited to the Syracuse Crunch training camp which opened this week. Aulin will play with the Crunch, the Blue Jackets’ American Hockey League affiliate, and maintain hope for an opportunity to return to the National Hockey League.
“Jared has the personality, positive attitude, drive, confidence and determination to make it as far as he wants,” said friend and Facebook fan page creator Peter Law. “I’m willing to bet this isn’t the last we hear in the Jared Aulin story.”
Aulin’s reassignment came as a part of the Blue Jackets’ third round of pre-season roster moves announced Sunday.