The Oiler's officially revealed the resurrection of Taylor Fedun today. The human interest-style story was accompanied by a video of Fedun skating with assistant medical trainer Chris Davie. I think every Oiler fan recalls with horror Fedun breaking the largest bone in his body. At the time of his injury, Fedun was on one hell of a ride through training camp and preseason - well out pacing his projections.

Notably the injury led to a great deal of discussion at the time. Fedun's youth, unlikely performance, the gruesome nature of the injury, the potential he may never play again and the questionable icing rules that led to the injury all became fodder for discussion.

We cannot know how Fedun's development may have progressed in the absence of his injury. Nor can we know, yet, if Fedun will get another shot at the show like he seemed to be on his way to getting at the outset of the season. Beyond Fedun, however, what I find interesting is the pressure laid to bare on the NHL by the media, players and fans in the wake of Fedun's injury. At the time there was wide spread speculation that the icing rules would be revisited if not completely restructured. So far that has not come to pass. It seems the pressure has evaporated.

As a thought experiment, ask yourself: what if Fedun's injury and Lucic's hit on Miller were swapped? The temporal proximity of events, media/fan reaction and GM meetings seem to naturally drive swift action by the NHL, whereas the temporal distance leads to ...?

For discussion:

1) How will Fedun's progress go? Is there a legit NHLer in there somewhere?

2) Is icing a legit problem in the NHL or is it just an isolated issue that crops up only on the back of its most recent victim (mostly from nanny-state types)?

3) The old adage "bad/hard cases make bad law" invites us to consider the way isolated events, media/fan reaction and policy interact.

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this FanPost are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views or position of the staff.