Waiver Wire: 10/2/24
Twelve new faces were placed on waivers Wednesday, per PuckPedia. All who were waived yesterday cleared, aside from goaltender Jiří Patera, who’s heading from Vancouver to Boston. Here’s the listing of today’s players who hit the wire:
Carolina Hurricanes
Colorado Avalanche
D Jack Ahcan
F Matthew Phillips
D Calle Rosén
Columbus Blue Jackets
New York Rangers
Pittsburgh Penguins
D Mac Hollowell
F Jimmy Huntington
F Marc Johnstone
Philadelphia Flyers
San Jose Sharks
Bruins Claim Jiří Patera From Canucks
The Bruins have claimed goaltender Jiří Patera off waivers from the Canucks, PuckPedia reports.
Patera is the only player out of 28 who were waived yesterday to be claimed. The 25-year-old reached Group VI UFA status this summer with only eight career NHL appearances under his belt with the Golden Knights.
Patera signed a two-year, two-way deal in Vancouver to initially serve as their No. 3 option behind Thatcher Demko and Arturs Silovs, but he’d slipped to fourth on the depth chart after they signed Kevin Lankinen late in the summer. He was still projected to start the season as their third-stringer, with Demko set to start the year on the shelf with a continuing knee injury, but became more expandable with the veteran Lankinen in the fold.
It’s still a blow to Vancouver’s thinning goalie depth and a boon for the Bruins, who add some insurance between the pipes with RFA Jeremy Swayman still likely to be unsigned by the time their season opener rolls around next week. It’s now a two-man competition between Patera and 26-year-old Brandon Bussi, who also requires waivers, to start the year as Joonas Korpisalo‘s backup. They’ll now choose which name to expose to the wire before opening night.
Given their similar ages, Bussi is probably the higher-ceiling option for the B’s. He has a strong .918 SV% in 78 AHL games with Providence over the past three years, although he’s yet to make his NHL debut. Patera has worse but still solid career AHL numbers with a .907 SV% through 85 appearances, and his brief NHL action with Vegas was fine – a .902 mark with a 3.57 GAA through seven starts and one relief appearance over the past two years.
Suppose Boston keeps Bussi as the backup to open the season and places Patera on waivers again to try and pass him to Providence. In that case, the Canucks can re-claim him and send him directly to their AHL affiliate in Abbotsford if they’re the only team to submit a claim.
If the Bruins decide/manage to retain Patera, it’s a solid move to acquire some experienced goalie depth for not just this season but the next one, too. Vancouver likely hoped the second year of the two-way pact would dissuade teams from making a claim, but it didn’t work out that way.
Blue Jackets Recall Three, Make Other Roster Moves
Oct. 2: Clayton, Svozil, and Sawchenko were returned to Cleveland today while Gaudet was released from his PTO, the Blue Jackets confirmed.
Oct. 1: The Blue Jackets have recalled defensemen Cole Clayton, Stanislav Svozil, and goaltender Zachary Sawchenko from AHL Cleveland, general manager Don Waddell announced Tuesday. They’ve also signed forward Jake Gaudet, who is under contract with Cleveland for this season, to a PTO and assigned forward Hunter McKown to the minors.
The moves come with three preseason games still left on Columbus’ schedule this week, including a home-and-home against the Penguins on Thursday and Friday. Adding some of their earlier training camp cuts back to the training camp roster gives them more flexibility to rest their regulars, likely saving most of them for the finale against Pittsburgh.
Clayton, 24, is an intriguing name to watch entering his fourth professional season. The right-shot defender went undrafted out of the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, signing an AHL deal with Cleveland in 2021 and spending three years there before landing a one-year entry-level deal with Columbus this past summer.
The Alberta native has good size at 6’2″ and 209 lbs and is coming off a career-best year on the farm, finishing fourth among Cleveland defenders in scoring with 20 points (5 G, 15 A) in 59 games with a +4 rating. His skating is a concern, and he’s not overly physical for his frame, but he does have good playmaking skills and could be a fringe NHL option down the line. He’ll get at least one more chance to prove his worth in exhibition competition before returning to Cleveland in the coming days.
Svozil was a third-rounder back in 2021, later than some thought he’d go after spending nearly the entire season in the top-level Czech Extraliga. Now 21, the left-shot blue liner is coming off a strong rookie season with Cleveland that saw him post five goals and 18 assists for 23 points in 57 games with a +1 rating.
He didn’t see NHL action last season but did make his debut at the tail end of the 2022-23 campaign, recording an assist and a -3 rating in two appearances. He has two years left on his entry-level contract and is expected to log top-four minutes for Cleveland this year. He should be considered for a mid-season recall if injuries strike.
Sawchenko, 26, was signed purely as organizational depth between the pipes this summer as a Group VI UFA. He spent last season on a two-way deal with the Canucks, but injuries limited him to just six appearances with AHL Abbotsford. He was strong in his limited run, though, posting a 2.12 GAA and .924 SV% with a 4-1-0 record. His career-average .898 SV% in the minors leaves much to be desired, though. He’s the fourth goalie on the Blue Jackets’ depth chart and will serve as the backup to Jet Greaves this season in Cleveland after clearing waivers last Saturday.
Gaudet, 28, will likely get a nice opportunity to skate in an exhibition game but don’t expect it to lead to an NHL deal down the line. The 6’2″, 201-lb center split last season between AHL Cleveland and ECHL Cincinnati, posting 12 points in 49 AHL contests and seven points in 10 ECHL games. He’s spent his entire professional career under contract with Cleveland after a four-year run with UMass, which ended with him captaining them to a national championship in 2021.
McKown, 22, will start the season in Cleveland after being cut from camp for the second year in a row. An undrafted free agent signing out of Colorado College in 2022-23, he played out the final 12 games of the season with Columbus and had two assists with a -4 rating. He didn’t crack the opening night roster in 2023-24, though, and proceeded to post a lukewarm nine goals and 24 points in 53 games with Cleveland.
Training Camp Cuts: 10/2/24
We’re in the final stages of teams making sweeping training camp cuts before the true final roster battles come into play. There are only six days to go until opening night, and most teams now only have five to 10 players – if that – to trim from their rosters to comply with the 23-player maximum. We’ll list all of Wednesday’s cuts here.
Last updated 1:33 p.m.
Carolina Hurricanes (per the team’s Walt Ruff)
G Spencer Martin (to AHL Chicago, pending waivers)
Chicago Blackhawks (per Mario Tirabassi of CHGO Sports)
D Louis Crevier (to AHL Rockford)
D Kevin Korchinski (to AHL Rockford)
F Frank Nazar (to AHL Rockford)
F AJ Spellacy (to OHL Windsor)
Colorado Avalanche (per team announcement)
D Jack Ahcan (to AHL Colorado, pending waivers)
D Sean Behrens (to AHL Colorado)
F Jean-Luc Foudy (to AHL Colorado)
F Jere Innala (to AHL Colorado)
F Jayson Megna (released from PTO to AHL Colorado)
G Trent Miner (to AHL Colorado)
F Matthew Phillips (to AHL Colorado, pending waivers)
F Jason Polin (to AHL Colorado)
D Calle Rosén (to AHL Colorado, pending waivers)
F Matthew Stienburg (to AHL Colorado)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
F Trey Fix-Wolansky (to AHL Cleveland, pending waivers)
New York Rangers (per team release)
F Anton Blidh (to AHL Hartford)
G Louis Domingue (to AHL Hartford)
D Casey Fitzgerald (to AHL Hartford)
G Dylan Garand (to AHL Hartford)
D Brandon Scanlin (to AHL Hartford)
Pittsburgh Penguins (per team announcement)
F Avery Hayes (released from PTO to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton)
D Dan Renouf (released from PTO to AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton)
San Jose Sharks (per team announcement)
F Andrew Poturalski (to AHL San Jose)
F Scott Sabourin (to AHL San Jose)
F Colin White (released from PTO to AHL San Jose)
Utah Hockey Club (per team announcement)
F Tij Iginla (to WHL Kelowna)
Vegas Golden Knights (per team release)
D Robert Hägg (to AHL Henderson)
F Mason Morelli (to AHL Henderson)
G Akira Schmid (to AHL Henderson)
Lightning Recall Dylan Duke
Forward Dylan Duke will get another look in the preseason with the Lightning. He won’t make the opening night roster after being cut from camp on Sunday, but he’s been recalled ahead of tonight’s exhibition game against the Panthers, the team announced.
The 21-year-old is slated to play most of his first professional season with the AHL’s Syracuse Crunch, although there’s a decent chance he’ll be near the top of Tampa’s list for mid-season call-ups. His showing in tonight’s contest will likely go a long way toward determining that.
A fourth-round pick back in 2021, the Ohio native has played the last three seasons on a star-studded University of Michigan squad. He ramped up his production every year, topping out with 26 goals, 23 assists, and 49 points in 41 games in 2023-24. He finished third on the team in scoring behind the Blue Jackets’ Gavin Brindley and the Penguins’ Rutger McGroarty and earned himself a spot on the Big 10 Conference’s Second All-Star Team.
Duke joined the Crunch for the final few games of the regular season and the playoffs, posting a combined two assists and a -1 rating in eight contests. He’ll be looking to make a much greater offensive impact after a summer of training. The sniper is under contract through 2026-27 and can play both left wing and center, although he’ll likely suit up at the former if he lands a full-time NHL role.
Waiver Wire: 10/1/24
28 players hit the waiver wire Tuesday, per PuckPedia. It’s a sharp increase from yesterday’s 12 names as more veterans are assigned to the minors later in camp. All of yesterday’s waived players cleared, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports. Today’s waiver placements are as follows:
Anaheim Ducks
Buffalo Sabres
F Joshua Dunne
F Mason Jobst
F Brett Murray
D Colton Poolman
D Jack Rathbone
G Felix Sandström
Calgary Flames
Edmonton Oilers
G Collin Delia
D Ben Gleason
D Philip Kemp
F Lane Pederson
Los Angeles Kings
Minnesota Wild
New York Rangers
F Anton Blidh
G Louis Domingue
D Casey Fitzgerald
D Brandon Scanlin
Seattle Kraken
F Brandon Biro
F Max McCormick
F Ben Meyers
D Gustav Olofsson
F Mitchell Stephens
G Ales Stezka
Vancouver Canucks
F Phillip Di Giuseppe
G Jiří Patera
F Nathan Smith
D Christian Wolanin
East Notes: Terry, Nedeljkovic, Toronto Expansion
Prolific AHL scoring winger Chris Terry is returning to the Islanders organization on a one-year deal with Bridgeport, the affiliate announced today.
Terry, now 35, was a fifth-round pick of the Hurricanes back in 2007. He only has 152 NHL games to his name over his lengthy professional career, none coming since the 2016-17 season, but he’s otherwise established himself as one of the top point producers in AHL history. The 5’10” left winger sits 22nd all-time in scoring with 741 points (311 G, 430 A) in 815 games and is a five-time AHL All-Star but has never won the Calder Cup.
The Ontario native spent last season with the independently operated Chicago Wolves, where he served as captain for the first time in his 14-year AHL career. He finished second on the team in scoring with 50 points (21 G, 29 A) in 61 games.
Terry spent the 2021-22 and 2022-23 campaigns in the Isles organization on AHL deals with Bridgeport. He served as an alternate captain both seasons and led them in scoring each time with showings of 61 and 78 points. He’ll be an important add to a Bridgeport club devoid of much high-powered offensive talent on loan from their parent club.
More from around the Eastern Conference:
- Penguins netminder Alex Nedeljkovic is being evaluated for a lower-body injury after leaving last night’s preseason win over the Red Wings in the first period, head coach Mike Sullivan said (via NHL.com). They’ll have a further update on his status later Tuesday. He’d be a significant loss if he’s not ready to start the season – Nedeljkovic started 12 of Pittsburgh’s final 13 games last season amid a tight race for a playoff spot. The 28-year-old signed a two-year, $5MM extension to remain in Pittsburgh last June after posting a .902 SV% in 38 appearances. If he’s set to miss any time, 22-year-old Joel Blomqvist would have the inside track to start the season as Tristan Jarry‘s backup before Nedeljkovic is ready to return.
- There’s long been talk of a second NHL franchise in the Greater Toronto Area if the NHL decided on another round of aggressive expansion. With Rogers recently becoming the majority owner of the Maple Leafs’ parent corporation, however, that’s now likely out of the question, The Athletic’s Chris Johnston outlines.
Canadiens Recall Lucas Condotta, Luke Tuch
The Canadiens have recalled forwards Lucas Condotta and Luke Tuch from the AHL’s Laval Rocket, per a team announcement. They’ll be available again to suit up in preseason action this week after they were a part of separate rounds of camp cuts in the past few days.
Condotta landed on waivers Sunday and cleared Monday without incident. The 26-year-old is entering his third full season in the Habs organization and is an alternate captain with the Rocket. An undrafted free-agent signing out of UMass-Lowell in 2022, the 6’1″, 223-lb center has 24 goals, 27 assists and 51 points in 144 appearances with Laval.
He’s also seen brief NHL action in each of the past two seasons, posting a goal and a +1 rating in four games while averaging 8:23 per contest. He’s coming off a down year with the Rocket, scoring eight goals and 19 points in 65 games after notching 16 goals and 31 points in 72 contests in 2022-23. He won’t need waivers to return to Laval, which will likely happen after tonight’s game against the Senators.
Tuch, the younger brother of Sabres fixture Alex Tuch, is a name with longer-term relevance. The 22-year-old was a second-round pick of the Habs back in 2020 and is beginning his professional career after a four-year run at Boston University. The New York-born left winger had 30 points in 39 games last year as a senior, setting career highs across the board while finishing sixth on the team in scoring. He won’t be on the opening night roster after initially being cut from camp last Saturday, but he could be a name to watch for an in-season recall if he starts off on the right foot in Laval.
Training Camp Cuts: 10/1/24
The calendar has flipped to October, which means we’re one week away from opening night. Most teams now have somewhere between 10 and 15 cuts to make before reaching their final opening night rosters. That means most sweeping cuts have already been made, and we’ll start to see more precise roster moves involving more notable names in the coming days. We’ll continue keeping tabs on all of Tuesday’s cuts in this article.
Last updated 3:18 p.m.
Anaheim Ducks (per team release)
D Drew Helleson (to AHL San Diego)
F Carson Meyer (to AHL San Diego, pending waivers)
F Jan Mysak (to AHL San Diego)
F Yegor Sidorov (to AHL San Diego)
Buffalo Sabres (per team announcement)
F Ty Cheveldayoff (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
F Riley Fiddler-Schultz (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
F Konsta Helenius (to AHL Rochester)
G Michael Houser (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
D Noah Laaouan (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
F Aleksandr Kisakov (to AHL Rochester)
D Vsevolod Komarov (to AHL Rochester)
D Zach Metsa (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
F Olivier Nadeau (to AHL Rochester)
F Viktor Neuchev (to AHL Rochester)
D Nikita Novikov (to AHL Rochester)
F Noah Östlund (to AHL Rochester)
D Ethan Prow (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
G Scott Ratzlaff (to WHL Seattle)
F Isak Rosen (to AHL Rochester)
F Graham Slaggert (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
D Peter Tischke (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
F Tyler Tullio (to AHL Rochester)
F Anton Wahlberg (to AHL Rochester)
F Brendan Warren (released from PTO to AHL Rochester)
Calgary Flames (per team release)
D Artem Grushnikov (to AHL Calgary)
G Waltteri Ignatjew (to AHL Calgary)
D Yan Kuznetsov (to AHL Calgary)
Columbus Blue Jackets (per team release)
F Hunter McKown (to AHL Cleveland)
Edmonton Oilers (per team release)
D Beau Akey (to OHL Barrie)
G Collin Delia (to AHL Bakersfield, pending waivers)
D Ben Gleason (to AHL Bakersfield, pending waivers)
F James Hamblin (to AHL Bakersfield)
D Philip Kemp (to AHL Bakersfield, pending waivers)
F Lane Pederson (to AHL Bakersfield, pending waivers)
Florida Panthers (per team release)
F Ryan McAllister (to AHL Charlotte)
F Oliver Okuliar (to AHL Charlotte)
F Wilmer Skoog (to AHL Charlotte)
Los Angeles Kings (per team announcement)
F Samuel Helenius (to AHL Ontario)
F Jeff Malott (to AHL Ontario)
G Dryden McKay (released from PTO to AHL Ontario)
D Jacob Moverare (to AHL Ontario, pending waivers)
D John Parker-Jones (released from PTO to AHL Ontario)
Minnesota Wild (per team announcement)
F Reese Johnson (to AHL Iowa, pending waivers)
New Jersey Devils (per team release)
G Michael Hutchinson (released from PTO)
New York Rangers (per team release)
D Madison Bowey (released from PTO to AHL Hartford)
F Jaroslav Chmelar (to AHL Hartford)
F Adam Erne (released from PTO to AHL Hartford)
D Blake Hillman (released from PTO to AHL Hartford)
F Blade Jenkins (released from PTO to AHL Hartford)
F Bryce McConnell-Barker (to AHL Hartford)
F Dylan Roobroeck (to AHL Hartford)
F Nate Sucese (released from PTO to AHL Hartford)
F Adam Sýkora (to AHL Hartford)
Seattle Kraken (per team announcement)
F Brandon Biro (to AHL Coachella Valley, pending waivers)
F Max McCormick (to AHL Coachella Valley, pending waivers)
F Jacob Melanson (to AHL Coachella Valley)
F Ben Meyers (to AHL Coachella Valley, pending waivers)
D Gustav Olofsson (to AHL Coachella Valley, pending waivers)
D Ville Ottavainen (to AHL Coachella Valley)
F Mitchell Stephens (to AHL Coachella Valley, pending waivers)
F Eduard Sale (to AHL Coachella Valley)
G Ales Stezka (to AHL Coachella Valley, pending waivers)
Vancouver Canucks (per team announcement)
F Phillip Di Giuseppe (to AHL Abbotsford, pending waivers)
D Christian Felton (to AHL Abbotsford)
F Linus Karlsson (to AHL Abbotsford)
D Kirill Kudryavtsev (to AHL Abbotsford)
F Jonathan Lekkerimäki (to AHL Abbotsford)
D Cole McWard (to AHL Abbotsford)
F Ty Mueller (to AHL Abbotsford)
G Jiří Patera (to AHL Abbotsford, pending waivers)
D Elias Pettersson (to AHL Abbotsford)
F Max Sasson (to AHL Abbotsford)
F Nathan Smith (to AHL Abbotsford, pending waivers)
G Nikita Tolopilo (to AHL Abbotsford)
D Christian Wolanin (to AHL Abbotsford, pending waivers)
Washington Capitals (per team announcement)
F Terik Parascak (to WHL Prince George)
Canucks Release Sammy Blais
The Canucks announced Monday that they’ve released winger Sammy Blais, who’d been in camp on a professional tryout.
Blais, 28, signed a minor league pact with AHL Abbotsford simultaneously with his PTO in Vancouver last month. He made it into three preseason games and went without a point, struggling away from the puck with a -3 rating and posting 2 PIMs.
Blais was essentially competing for a 13th or 14th forward role – with the Canucks signing Kiefer Sherwood and Daniel Sprong to bolster their bottom six, as well as with prospect Jonathan Lekkerimäki looking to crack the opening night roster, there wasn’t going to room for him to win an everyday spot on their fourth line. The Canucks will stick with in-house options for the extra forward role, though, likely center Nils Åman.
Blais spent the 2023-24 season with the Blues, who re-acquired him from the Rangers midway through 2022-23 in the Vladimir Tarasenko trade. He was a sixth-round pick by St. Louis back in 2014 and spent his first four NHL seasons there before being traded to New York in the summer of 2021 with a second-round pick for Pavel Buchnevich.
The 2019 Stanley Cup champ seemed to break out down the stretch after returning to the Blues in 2022-23, posting 20 points in 31 games, but he couldn’t replicate that output in 2023-24. The 6’2″ agitator struggled to stay in the Blues’ lineup last season, averaging 9:41 across 53 contests and scoring just one goal and six assists for seven points with a -11 rating.
He’s squarely a net negative possession player at even strength throughout his career, too, and with career averages of nine goals and 24 points per 82 games, there’s little to suggest he’s capable of anything more than fourth-line duties for a sustained period in the NHL. For the first time since 2017, he’ll need to start in the minors and work his way up. The Canucks (or any team) could still sign Blais to a two-way deal after the season gets underway if he has a strong start in Abbotsford.