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Myers, Desrosiers Clear Waivers

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March 20: Myers and Desrosiers have cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the minor leagues. Mayhew was claimed by the Anaheim Ducks and will stay in the NHL for now.

March 19: With there being just two days before the trade deadline, there should be an uptick of waiver activity before then.  That started today as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that Philippe Myers (Predators), Gerry Mayhew (Flyers), and Phillipe Desrosiers (Jets) are all on waivers.

Myers is easily the headline player on this list.  His stock has fallen sharply since establishing himself as a regular on Philadelphia’s back end in 2019-20.  He was part of the Ryan Ellis traded over the summer with the hope that a change of scenery would get him going again.  That hasn’t happened.  Instead, the 25-year-old has played in just 27 games this season while spending even more time as a healthy scratch.  With 142 games of NHL experience over four seasons and being a big right-shot defender, Myers could, in theory, be appealing to some teams.  However, he has a $2.55MM AAV through next season and his salary jumps to $3.8MM in 2022-23.  That will certainly limit his suitors which explains why he’s on the waiver wire today and not being traded.  Stephen Whyno of the Associated Press suggests (Twitter link) that the Flyers could be a team to claim Myers knowing that they’re likely to move pending UFA Justin Braun by Monday’s trade deadline.

Mayhew has played in 29 games with Philadelphia this season, his longest stretch of NHL action and he has been somewhat productive with six goals although he has yet to record an assist while logging over 12 minutes a game.  The 29-year-old has been a top scorer at the AHL level for the last several years and has 16 points in 24 games with Lehigh Valley of the AHL this season.  Mayhew is making $800K at the NHL level this season and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer.

As for Desrosiers, his placement means that he has agreed to an NHL deal with Winnipeg with the team announcing it will carry a $750K cap hit.  The 26-year-old has played in three games with their AHL affiliate in Manitoba this season but has spent the majority of the year with Trois-Rivieres of the ECHL.  He’ll continue to serve as extra depth for them but will now be eligible to be recalled if they need him.  The Jets had 10 open contract slots out of the maximum of 50 so there’s no risk in them handing out this contract.

Injury Notes: Drouin, DeAngelo, Kuhlman

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Earlier today, it was announced that several key players were activated off of injured-reserve. One of those players is Montreal Canadiens’ forward Jonathan Drouin (link). Drouin last played for the Canadiens on January 20th, against Vegas, before going on injured reserve for nearly two months.

Despite Montreal being well outside of the playoff picture, there is a potentially exciting detail to his return: a chance to play under interim head coach Martin St. Louis. After St. Louis took over coaching duties for the Canadiens, forward Cole Caufield saw a resurgence and a return to form of the player he was in last year’s playoffs. While Drouin had not struggled this year in the ways that Caufield did, perhaps a change of pace in that of St. Louis could offer a boost to Drouin, who currently has six goals and 14 assists in 32 games this season.

  • Also activated off of injured reserve was Carolina Hurricanes’ defenseman Anthony DeAngelo. The Hurricanes have been without DeAngelo since February 21st, and while they have not struggled the entire time, going 6-3-2, they have dropped their last three games, and hope that perhaps DeAngelo can provide a spark. That hope is certainly not unfounded, as DeAngelo has enjoyed a tremendous bounce-back season after a difficult 2020-21 with the New York Rangers. DeAngelo currently has nine goals and 31 assists in in 43 games for the Hurricanes this season.
  • Karson Kuhlman will also return to the ice, as the Seattle Kraken activated the forward off of IR earlier today. Kuhlman has had a difficult season thus far, recording just two points in 19 games for the Boston Bruins before being placed on waivers. He would be claimed off waivers by the Kraken on January 17 and play in just five games before being placed on IR on February 1st. Being healthy once again, and Seattle expected to move some pieces out before Monday’s trade deadline, Kuhlman can look to return to the lineup and perhaps become a consistent contributor.

Ryan Fitzgerald Clears Waivers; Tyson Foerster Loaned To OHL

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Saturday: Fitzgerald has cleared waivers, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports.

Friday: The Philadelphia Flyers have placed Ryan Fitzgerald on waivers, suggesting he is ready to return to action after spending the entire year to this point on season-opening injured reserve. In addition, the team has made another interesting transaction, loaning Tyson Foerster back to the Barrie Colts of the OHL.

Foerster, 20, was one of the handful of young players allowed to spend this season in the AHL even when he would have normally been ineligible, because of the number of minor league games he played in 2020-21. Unfortunately, just a few weeks into the season he suffered a shoulder injury that has limited him to just nine games with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. His loan back to Barrie is a good sign that he’s ready to return and try to help the Colts chase down a playoff spot over the next few weeks.

Fitzgerald meanwhile is a player who would have normally been waived prior to the season, as his one-year, two-way contract was never supposed to make him a regular on the Flyers roster. In fact, the 27-year-old forward is still waiting for his first taste of NHL action, now five years into his professional career. Originally selected 120th overall by the Boston Bruins in 2013, Fitzgerald had 21 points in 28 games for the Phantoms last season and should provide a nice veteran boost to the group once he’s back up to speed. Given his injury history and inexperience, it is unlikely that Fitzgerald is claimed.

Andrej Sekera Placed On Waivers

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March 18: Sekera has cleared waivers, according to Chris Johnston of TSN. The veteran defenseman can now be assigned to the minor leagues, where $1.125MM of his cap hit would come off the books.

March 17: A somewhat surprising name has hit the wire today, as Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports the Dallas Stars have placed Andrej Sekera on waivers. Sekera was only activated from long-term injured reserve a few days ago and hasn’t played since January.

Last playing on January 28, Sekera’s placement on waivers is most interesting because of the situation the Stars are currently in. The team is still battling for playoff spot in the Central Division but recently lost top defenseman Miro Heiskanen to mononucleosis. They have relied heavily of late on the trio of John Klingberg, Ryan Suter, and Esa Lindell, while Joel Hanley, he of just 108 career NHL games, is seeing only a handful of minutes.

Sekera would seem to be a fine depth piece to insert over Hanley if needed, and it even seemed that was the plan just a few hours ago. As Saad Yousuf of The Athletic tweets, head coach Rick Bowness said this morning that they would “for sure” get Sekera into the lineup on the weekend. If that is still the plan, it obviously is not hinging on the veteran defenseman clearing waivers today, something that’s certainly no guarantee this time of year.

While he does carry a $1.5MM cap hit, Sekera is also on an expiring deal, meaning a team could potentially claim him as if he were a deadline rental acquisition. It doesn’t seem out of the realm of possibility for a player with 834 games of NHL experience to draw some interest, even if his season hasn’t been a successful one. In 24 games, Sekera has registered just three points while averaging just under 14 minutes a night.

If he does clear, the Stars could potentially bury a good chunk of his cap hit in the minor leagues if they are looking to make an addition of their own at the deadline.

Mathieu Perreault, Tyler Benson Placed Clear Waivers

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March 17: Both players have cleared waivers; Benson has already been loaned to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors.

March 16: The Montreal Canadiens have placed Mathieu Perreault on waivers, as several players currently on injured reserve get closer to returning. He won’t be alone though, as the Edmonton Oilers have also waived Tyler Benson.

Perreault, 34, actually cleared waivers last season as well, though at that point it was more about his expensive cap hit than anything else. This time the veteran forward is signed for just $950K but has found himself out of the lineup for most of the year, due to injury or inconsistent on-ice play. In 18 games he has just three goals and five points, though that does include an assist in last night’s match against the Arizona Coyotes.

While he may intrigue some teams because of the 700 games of NHL experience, Perreault is long past the point of being a top-six contributor and would likely only fit as a depth piece on a contending squad. Even in Montreal he hasn’t been a regular and is averaging fewer than 12 minutes when he does get into the lineup.

Benson meanwhile is sort of on the other end of his career, unable to break into the league in the first place. The 24-year-old has been outstanding in the minors for several years, was the 32nd overall pick in 2016, and yet can’t seem to make an impact at the NHL level. In 29 games this season he has just two points, and is likely headed back to the AHL to make room for Jesse Puljujarvi should he clear tomorrow.

While Benson does have youth on his side, it’s very unclear at this point whether another team wants to give him a chance through the waivers process. Interestingly enough, clearing waivers actually could potentially raise his trade value for any deadline dealing the Oilers have in mind, as he would then be able to move up and down for any acquiring team instead of sitting on the NHL roster.

Mark Jankowski Clears Waivers

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March 16: Jankowski has cleared and can now be re-assigned to the AHL.

March 15: The Buffalo Sabres have placed Mark Jankowski on waivers today, according to Chris Johnston of TSN. The move suggests that Zemgus Girgensons is ready to return from injured reserve.

It seems like a decade ago that Jankowski broke out with 17 goals as a rookie, even though it was actually in 2017-18. The 27-year-old forward has fallen off a cliff since then, and has been a healthy scratch for the Sabres over the last few weeks. With just two goals and five points this season, his totals from the past three seasons combined reach just 11 and 23, coming as a part of three different teams.

Now on waivers for the first time in his career, there will be an easy way to tell what kind of value the rest of the league places on the 2012 first-round pick. Jankowski is signed to just a one-year, two-way contract that carries an NHL cap hit of just $750K, one that he didn’t even ink until partway through the season. If there was anyone looking for a depth addition who can play both center and wing, there’s no financial reason why they couldn’t claim him.

Still, given his play so far and the fact that he can’t get into the Buffalo lineup, it seems more likely that he’ll clear and be sent to the minor leagues. Before signing the NHL deal in November, he had 12 points in 13 games for the Rochester Americans.

Canadiens’ Cedric Paquette Clears Waivers

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March 13: Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Paquette cleared waivers today. After going unclaimed, Montreal can now assign him to the Laval Rocket.

March 12: It has been a tough season for Canadiens center Cedric Paquette.  He has struggled to stay healthy and when he has been in the lineup, things haven’t gone much better.  As a result, Montreal has placed Paquette on waivers, as first reported by TVA Sports’ Renaud Lavoie (Twitter link).

The 28-year-old signed with Montreal in the summer, inking a one-year, $950K deal with an eye on him playing a regular role on the fourth line and penalty kill.  However, he has wound up playing in just 24 games this season, recording two assists while logging less than nine minutes a night in ice time.  That production is largely in line with last season when he managed just eight points in 48 games between Ottawa and Carolina where he was in and out of the lineup.

Paquette is a veteran of over 400 NHL regular season games and has 95 career playoff contests under his belt so there’s a small chance a team might want him for depth for the postseason.  More likely is that he’ll go unclaimed on Sunday and be sent to AHL Laval where his entire cap hit would come off Montreal’s books.

Ryan Dzingel Clears Waivers

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Saturday: Dzingel has cleared waivers, Friedman reports.  He’s now eligible to be sent to the Barracuda of the AHL.

Friday: After finding himself a healthy scratch again recently, Ryan Dzingel is now on waivers according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Because he was claimed by the San Jose Sharks themselves, the Toronto Maple Leafs now have an opportunity to potentially claim him and send him directly to the minor leagues. They’ll only be able to do that if they are the only team that puts in a claim though, so his future isn’t yet clear.

It’s been an odd year for Dzingel, who signed a one-year, $1.1MM contract with the Arizona Coyotes in the offseason. After playing in 26 games and not really finding his footing with the Coyotes, he was included in a trade that saw Ilya Lyubushkin head to Toronto. Before even getting on a plane, the 30-year-old forward was put on waivers, where the Sharks claimed him as they dealt with some forward injuries. Now, after just six games with the Sharks, he’s available to the whole league once again.

In this case, that $1.1MM cap hit actually works against him, as teams won’t want to carry the extra money if he’s not a regular in the lineup. If he’s claimed tomorrow he’ll have to stay on the active roster, at least for anyone but the Maple Leafs. For Toronto, who were open about the fact that they hoped to slip him through waivers and stash him in the minor leagues after the trade, he could be a valuable injury replacement option.

Still, it’s a far fall for a player who scored 49 goals over a two-season stretch just a few years ago and was traded for Anthony Duclair and two second-round picks in 2019. Dzingel has struggled ever since, and has just five goals and eight points in 32 total games this season.

Anaheim Ducks Claim Andrej Sustr

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The Anaheim Ducks are bringing back a familiar face, as they have claimed Andrej Sustr off waivers from the Tampa Bay Lightning according to Chris Johnston of TSN.

Sustr, 31, has only played for two NHL organizations in his pro career, the Lightning and the Ducks–though the latter was for a very brief stint. In 2018 the hulking defenseman signed a one-year, $1.3MM contract with Anaheim and was expected to be a full-time part of the blueline. Instead, he played only five games in a Ducks uniform and spent most of the season in the minor leagues. That season spent in the AHL led to his departure from North America, as he left for the KHL to play two seasons after that one year in the Anaheim organization.

Now he’s back, though it’s still unclear how much playing time he’ll actually get with the Ducks. Sustr has played in 15 games with the Lightning this season but averaged just over ten minutes of ice time, and has spent much more time in the minor leagues with the Syracuse Crunch. Because he was claimed on waivers he’ll remain in the NHL for now, though Anaheim’s defensive depth chart isn’t much easier to crack than Tampa Bay’s.

In fact, his acquisition will raise some eyebrows around the league, given the pending unrestricted free agency of Josh Manson and Hampus Lindholm and general manager Pat Verbeek’s clear message that he will trade them if unable to reach extensions. Even with Manson on injured reserve the Ducks appear to have at least seven players that would be working ahead of Sustr, though perhaps head coach Dallas Eakins wants to insert some more size into the lineup.

At any rate, it means for now the 31-year-old will continue to earn his NHL salary and get a chance at NHL action, instead of returning to Syracuse where he would make significantly less.

Danny DeKeyser Clears Waivers

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March 8: DeKeyser has cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the minor leagues. With Vrana already confirmed for tonight’s game, the team will need to move someone off the roster to make room for his return. If they do assign DeKeyser to the AHL, $1.125MM of his cap hit would be buried. Sustr meanwhile was claimed by the Anaheim Ducks.

March 7: After claiming Olli Juolevi yesterday, the Detroit Red Wings have placed a veteran defenseman on waivers. Danny DeKeyser has been waived, along with Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Andrej Sustr, according to Chris Johnston of TSN.

DeKeyser, 32, cleared waivers multiple times last season but has spent this year on the active roster while he plays out the end of his long-term contract. Signed to a six-year, $30MM deal in 2016, he’ll be an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career this offseason. Where his career goes next is unclear, as the once stalwart two-way defender has found his role diminished in recent years.

Interestingly enough, at even-strength DeKeyser has played almost exclusively alongside rookie phenom Moritz Seider, giving the young defenseman a stable veteran partner to lean on as he transitions to NHL life. But it’s that even-strength ice time that has come way down, with DeKeyser averaging less than four other regular defensemen in Detroit. On the other hand, the penalty kill is where he still provides some nice value, logging the most short-handed time of any Red Wings player, but none of that would suggest that a team would take a chance on his $5MM cap hit through waivers. With Juolevi now in the fold–and a roster spot likely needed for Jakub Vrana’s impending activation–it’s not clear what role DeKeyser will have on the Red Wings down the stretch.

For Sustr, waivers is nothing new. He has already cleared them before the season began, and several other times throughout his NHL career. This season he has played in 15 games for the Lightning, basically serving more as a practice player and injury insurance than anything else. If he clears, he’ll likely be bounced up and down between the AHL and NHL for another chunk of the season.

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