It's been a long journey for Airdrie's Dana Tyrell, but so far he's enjoying his time with his new hockey team.

Earlier this fall, Tyrell was sent to the Wichita Thunder of the ECHL after trying out for the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League.

Despite suffering a torn MCL over a week ago, Tyrell said he's just happy to be back and playing.

"I'm super happy to get back on the ice and playing with a team again. The guys are great, the coach is great. We're doing good so far. We're 6-0, first place team in the league which is awesome."

It's been nearly two years since Tyrell last suited up and played, having spent time with the Columbus Blue Jackets and their affiliate team, the Springfield Falcons in 2015.

He said he had to take a couple years off for personal reasons, but once he was able to get back up and skating, it was like he never missed a beat.

Tyrell owes a lot to his upbringing in the Airdrie Minor Hockey Association for all of his successes so far.

"Airdrie's my home. Airdrie will always be my home. It was great playing there in Minor Hockey. It brought me up to the level to make NHL. All the support of all the people in Airdrie has been wonderful so thank you."

Tyrell is working on recovering from his MCL injury and hopes to be back on the ice with Wichita in the next couple weeks.

 

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