Philippe Myers Clears Waivers
Saturday: Myers has cleared waivers, Friedman reports. He has been sent to the minors, creating enough cap space for Cirelli to be activated from LTIR.
Friday: The Tampa Bay Lightning have placed defenseman Philippe Myers on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The team is expected to get Anthony Cirelli back soon, and will need cap space to activate him from long-term injured reserve.
It surprised many when the Lightning decided to keep Myers on the books this summer after acquiring him from the Nashville Predators in the Ryan McDonagh trade. A buyout would have actually given the team a cap credit of more than $616K, for the cost of a $633K penalty in 2023-24. Instead, they decided to not only keep his current deal in place but sign him to a one-year extension. Myers will make $1.4MM next season, after his current $2.55MM cap hit expires.
That kind of money likely means he clears waivers tomorrow, even if he has played okay this year. The Lightning are barely using him, but in his limited minutes, the 6’5″ defenseman does have three points and excellent possession numbers.
It very well may have been the emergence of another right-handed defenseman that could spell the end for Myers in Tampa Bay. Nick Perbix has gone from sixth-round afterthought to full-time NHL option in short order, racking up six points in 17 games so far this season. Those 17 NHL appearances match the total number of professional games he had played before this season, after signing out of St. Cloud State down the stretch. The 24-year-old is waiver-exempt and may still need to be bounced down at some point because of cap concerns, but looks like a piece to keep in Tampa Bay.
Sending Myers to the AHL would not clear his entire contract off the books. Only $1.125MM of the $2.55MM cap hit would be buried. If he is claimed, it would give them enough room to activate Cirelli without making an additional move.
Kieffer Bellows Clears Waivers; Travis Konecny Activated
Dec 2: In what should be considered a win for the Flyers, Bellows has cleared and can now be assigned to the minor leagues. The team can take a longer look at him there, hoping to turn some of that potential into production.
Dec 1: The Philadelphia Flyers took a chance when claiming Kieffer Bellows off waivers earlier this season but it didn’t pay off. After 11 scoreless games with the team, Bellows is back on waivers today, available for claim by the rest of the league. The team has activated Travis Konecny in his place.
Bellows, 24, doesn’t have a point all season after playing in 45 rather promising games last year. The 2016 first-round pick seemed to find a bit of a niche as a physical option that could contribute lower down in the lineup but all of that has disappeared this time around. Even with a strong opportunity in Philadelphia – he saw more than 19 minutes last week against the Pittsburgh Penguins – he couldn’t generate much of anything, and now finds himself on the edge of the minor leagues once again.
The difficult part now is Bellows’ contract situation. The one-year, $1.2MM deal he signed in the offseason could end up leading to him being cut loose at the end of this season by the Flyers, or New York Islanders, if they reclaim him. As an arbitration-eligible restricted free agent due a qualifying offer of the same $1.2MM, he will likely end up non-qualified if his season continues like this. It would be hard for any team to justify another deal at that price for a player that can’t contribute at the NHL level.
In his place comes Konecny, though he is still a game-time decision for tonight’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 25-year-old forward is still the team’s second-leading scorer, despite leaving a game on November 17 early. His 19 points in 17 games represent a pace that would have him setting career highs, and head coach John Tortorella obviously sees him as a top option.
Konecny has played more than 19 minutes in 12 of the 16 games he finished, contributing on both the powerplay and penalty kill. If the Flyers are going to turn things around, he’ll be a big part of it.
Cal Petersen Clears Waivers; Kings Make Several Roster Moves
3:31 PM: Add one more roster move to today’s avalanche of transactions in Southern California. Per a team release, the Kings have recalled forward Tyler Madden from the Reign.
This recall puts Madden, 23, in a position to make his NHL debut. The forward is perhaps best known as a former Vancouver Canucks prospect who was sent to Los Angeles as part of the team’s Tyler Toffoli trade.
Madden has scored five goals and eight points in 16 AHL games so far this year and scored 14 goals and 31 points in 48 games last year. Madden played his collegiate career at Northeastern University and scored 37 points in 27 games in his second and final season there.
1:15 PM: As expected, Cal Petersen has cleared waivers after a dreadful start to the season. The Los Angeles Kings have sent him to the minor leagues, while completing several other roster moves. Tobias Bjornfot, Pheonix Copley, and Samuel Fagemo have been recalled, while Rasmus Kupari and Jordan Spence are joining Petersen with the Ontario Reign.
It has been a precipitous fall from grace for Petersen, who signed a $15MM contract just over 14 months ago. That deal includes a $4MM signing bonus next year and $11MM total over the last two seasons, a price tag that many clubs would likely balk at if considering a claim. The fact is that he just hasn’t been good enough to justify that price tag, making it easy to understand why teams would pass over him on waivers.
If he can get his game back in order, there will be a path back to the NHL for Petersen. Copley doesn’t represent a huge upgrade, despite strong performances in the minor leagues. Through 31 NHL games, the 30-year-old has a .900 save percentage, and hasn’t played regularly at that level since 2018-19. While he can serve as a backup, for the time being, the Kings goaltending situation looks rather suspect at the moment.
By assigning Petersen to the minor leagues, Los Angeles will clear $1.125MM of cap space off the books, though a good chunk of that is eaten up by Copley’s $825K deal.
Vancouver Canucks Recall Phillip Di Giuseppe
Nov 30: With Mikheyev fully back in the fold, Vancouver returned Di Giuseppe to Abbotsford Wednesday night, per the team.
Nov 29: After opting to waive him over a month ago, the Vancouver Canucks are bringing forward Phillip Di Giuseppe back up to the NHL. General manager Patrik Allvin announced his recall from the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks Tuesday night.
Di Giuseppe comes to the NHL to potentially relieve Ilya Mikheyev, who could miss tonight’s game against the Washington Capitals with an illness. Both Di Giuseppe and Mikheyev were on the ice for warmups ahead of the game.
Now 29, Di Giuseppe is in his second year with the Canucks organization. He’s yet to score a goal this season in Abbotsford but does have five assists through seven games after approaching a point-per-game pace last season.
He has 201 games of NHL experience split between Carolina, Nashville, and the New York Rangers, and his a capable fourth-line plug-in when required.
As he has not spent more than 30 days on an NHL roster since clearing, Di Giuseppe will not require waivers again when the team opts to return him to Abbotsford.
Los Angeles Kings Place Cal Petersen On Waivers
After allowing four goals on 16 shots last night in what ended up a 9-8 loss to the Seattle Kraken, Cal Petersen has been placed on waivers according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The Los Angeles Kings netminder has been brutal this year, posting an .868 save percentage through his first ten appearances. He is in the first season of a three-year, $15MM contract extension signed in the fall of 2021.
The Petersen story is an interesting one. Selected 129th overall by the Buffalo Sabres in 2013, he would go back to the USHL for a year after his draft, before heading to Notre Dame. Starring for the Irish for three years, he decided to leave school early and pursue a professional career. Petersen would ultimately decide not to sign with the Sabres and became a free agent, able to choose his destination.
Los Angeles is where he landed, which at the time seemed a bit of an odd choice. The team already had Jonathan Quick installed as the full-time starter and Jack Campbell was starting to come into his own as the backup. It appeared as though Petersen would be blocked from the NHL net for a while.
Because of injuries and poor play, however, it wouldn’t be long before Petersen was making his debut. In his second pro season, he played 11 games for the Kings and posted a .924, showing that they could have found their future starter. A trade of Campbell the next season, and more struggles from Quick meant Petersen was getting a chance, and he ran with it, posting a .916 save percentage in 54 games over his first three years.
Heading into last season, he was expected to split the work with Quick and the team awarded him with a shiny new three-year extension, despite his previous deal still having a year left. The Kings probably should have waited, as Petersen’s play deteriorated, with him posting an .895 save percentage over 37 appearances. When Los Angeles reached the playoffs, there was no doubt who would be starting for them, and it wasn’t Petersen.
Now, with an even worse performance through the early part of the year and higher expectations for the Kings, the team can’t wait around any more. They’ve now offered him up to anyone who wants to take on the whole contract and could send him to the minor leagues to get back on track if he clears.
It seems unlikely that any team in the league would bite, especially due to the back-loaded nature of the deal. Petersen is owed a $4MM signing bonus next season and then has a $6MM salary in year three, meaning any claiming team would be taking on a lot of financial risk for a goaltender who has struggled.
Jakub Pour Clears Unconditional Waivers
Nov 30: CapFriendly reports that Pour has cleared waivers and will now have his contract terminated.
Nov 29: The Chicago Blackhawks have placed Jakub Pour on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a contract termination, according to Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets. The young forward had been playing with the Indy Fuel of the ECHL.
Signed in the summer of 2021 to a two-year entry-level contract, Pour was an undrafted free agent from the Czech Republic who had caught the eye of someone in the Blackhawks organization. After struggling in his first season with the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL, it was down to the ECHL for him this year. More struggles have followed, with just five points in 15 games, so a mutual contract termination seems like the best thing for both parties.
This will clear the way for Pour to return to Europe, while also clearing a contract slot for the Blackhawks. He likely would not have received a qualifying offer at the end of the year, meaning this just allows him to look for another job a few months early.
Pour will become an unrestricted free agent tomorrow, should he go unclaimed.
Anton Stralman Clears Waivers
Nov 29: Perhaps surprisingly, Stralman has indeed cleared waivers and can be assigned to the minor leagues to make room for Forbort.
Nov 28: After playing just 8:44 in his last appearance with the Boston Bruins, Anton Stralman finds himself on waivers today. The veteran defenseman is available for claim, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet, which would potentially open up a roster spot for the soon-to-return Derek Forbort.
Stralman, 36, signed a one-year, $1MM contract with the Bruins in October, giving the team a veteran defenseman to lean on while they dealt with injuries. Now, after eight relatively underwhelming appearances, the team needs the cap space and the roster spot. Stralman failed to record a point in his games as a Bruin, though seven of the eight did result in wins. In two of those, he even logged more than 19 minutes, though the ice time has been more difficult to come by as the season progressed.
It will be interesting to see if a defense-needy team takes a shot on the veteran right-hander. Stralman has more than 900 games of NHL experience and was once a top-pairing two-way option, capable of supporting more offensive-minded players. In 2014-15, skating for much of the year next to a young Victor Hedman, he finished 13th in Norris Trophy voting.
That defenseman is long gone, but there’s at least reason to believe he could still help a team’s bottom pair. As recently as last season, he logged more than 21 minutes a night for the Arizona Coyotes, racking up 23 points despite brutal deployment numbers – receiving almost nothing but defensive zone starts to help protect some of the team’s younger options. For teams dealing with multiple injuries on the back end, he could add some stability.
Riley Sheahan Clears Unconditional Waivers
Nov 28: Sheahan has cleared waivers, meaning his contract will be terminated.
Nov 27: The Buffalo Sabres announced this afternoon that they have placed forward Riley Sheahan on unconditional waivers, meaning that the veteran’s contract is set to be terminated. Sheahan, who signed a one-year deal with Buffalo this summer, had already been placed on standard waivers, and cleared, back in October and bounced between the NHL and AHL several times.
It’s unclear what the next step for Sheahan will be, assuming he clears waivers and is granted his release, however an immediate NHL opportunity seems unlikely, especially considering he’s already cleared waivers just under a month ago. Buffalo signed Sheahan, 30, back in August to a one-year, two-way deal in the hopes he could provide a veteran presence in their bottom-six as their young team took it’s next step. That hasn’t necessarily gone as planned.
This season, Sheahan has played in just eight games total while shuffling between Buffalo and Rochester, where the Sabres’ AHL affiliate is located. With Buffalo, Sheahan skated in two games, not making much of an impact. With Rochester, the forward played in six games and tallied three assists.
A first-round pick in 2010, Sheahan has made a career as a respectable depth forward, providing a solid defensive game while chipping in modestly on offense. His best season came in 2014-15 as a member of the Detroit Red Wings, who drafted him, recording 36 points on 13 goals and 23 assists.
Wayne Simmonds, Zach Sanford Clear Waivers
Nov 23: While Hellberg was claimed yet again, both Simmonds and Sanford have cleared and can be sent to the minor leagues.
Nov 22: The NHL waiver wire is busy today, with three names available for claim. Chris Johnston of NorthStar Bets reports that Wayne Simmonds of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Zach Sanford of the Nashville Predators, and Magnus Hellberg of the Seattle Kraken have all been placed on waivers.
For Simmonds, this isn’t much of a surprise. The 34-year-old has already passed through waivers once this season in early October. No longer a regular in the Toronto lineup, he has bounced up and down between the NHL and AHL whenever necessary, playing in just four games to this point. He’ll likely continue to do the same thing, but needed to have his waiver clock reset after 30 days on the active roster had passed.
Hellberg, meanwhile, will just have to hope he doesn’t have to move again. The veteran netminder signed with the Seattle Kraken but when the team tried to waive him early in the year, the Ottawa Senators grabbed him while they dealt with goaltending issues. While he was taken back by the Kraken, he hasn’t actually played for them yet and is now at risk of another claim. Given his success in the KHL and .935 save percentage in one game with Ottawa, it wouldn’t be much of a surprise to see Hellberg on his way to a new team tomorrow.
It’s Sanford that is somewhat surprising among the three players, as this will be his first time on waivers. The 28-year-old signed a one-year, $850K contract with the Predators in the offseason after splitting last year between the Senators and Winnipeg Jets. In eight games so far he has just two points, and saw fewer than 13 minutes in last night’s game against the Arizona Coyotes. Notably, he took an interference penalty in a tie game with only 2:52 remaining that could have easily cost the Predators the game, though they would eventually kill it off and win in a shootout.
Because of his size, inexpensive contract, and history of success in the league – Sanford scored 16 goals and 30 points in 58 games during the 2019-20 season – there’s a reasonable argument to be made for a team to claim him. If he isn’t taken, though, clearing waivers will give the Predators a bit more roster flexibility.
Detroit Red Wings Claim Magnus Hellberg
For the third time this season, Magnus Hellberg has been claimed on waivers. The veteran netminder is off to the Detroit Red Wings this time, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.
It was Detroit that signed Hellberg out of the KHL last season, and where he made his NHL return for one game. Their interest in him is obvious and yet, this is still something of a curious move.
Ville Husso and Alex Nedeljkovic are in place as the current duo, though the latter has experienced serious struggles this year. With an .873 save percentage, the 26-year-old has been one of the weakest netminders in the NHL and looks quite different from the goalie that was so good down the stretch for Carolina in 2021.
With Hellberg now in the mix, it’s unclear where Nedeljkovic’s future stands. He carries a $3MM cap hit this season and is scheduled for unrestricted free agency at the end of the year.