While other players are returning to North America because of injuries or even taxes, Corey Potter is leaving his overseas hockey team to be around for the birth of his child, according to the Edmonton Sun.
Potter played 17 games for the Vienna Capitals in Austria, but with his pregnant wife due for mid-December, the Edmonton Oilers blueliner opted to join his growing family.
This milestone personal moment might not call for the end of his time with the Austrian hockey team altogether, however. Potter said that he could envision returning to the squad if the lockout drags on.
“I have nothing but good things to say about my experience,” Potter said. “I would definitely like to come back.”
Potter had a goal and four points in those 17 contests with Vienna after producing 21 points in a career-high 62 games last season, averaging just under 20 minutes of ice time per game.
He doesn’t have to fret like many other players at his mid-level due to fact that his two-year, $1.55 million contract won’t expire until after the 2013-14 campaign.
That kind of security allows Potter to focus on being a father as well as a hockey player.