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Grant Hutton Clears Waivers

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April 22: Hutton has now cleared waivers, according to CapFriendly.

April 21: While a rarity to see waivers post-Trade Deadline, they are still in effect. The New York Islanders took advantage of this today, reports TVA’s Renaud Lavoie, as they’ve placed defenseman Grant Hutton on waivers.

Not a household name in the slightest, you might be surprised to learn Hutton has 16 games of action this season with the Islanders. While some came earlier in the season when the team was rattled with COVID cases, the 26-year-old has climbed up the organizational depth chart, actually playing in 11 straight games between March 27th and April 15th. In that timeframe, he averaged 13:42 of ice time per game and recorded his first NHL goal. Originally getting into the lineup with Scott Mayfield’s injury, they’ve had other depth defenders get healthy (like Sebastian Aho), and the organization has decided to send him down to the AHL’s Bridgeport Islanders.

Since Hutton can’t actually play in the NHL for another team this season, considering he would be changing teams after the Trade Deadline, there’s almost zero risk that he’ll get claimed off waivers. With the defenseman hitting unrestricted free agency at the end of this season as well, there’s no reason for a team to pick him up.

Hutton has 19 points in 45 games this season with Bridgeport.

Christian Jaros Clears Unconditional Waivers

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March 24: Jaros has cleared waivers and will now have his contract terminated.

March 23: The New Jersey Devils have placed Christian Jaros on unconditional waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. Just this week, Jaros already cleared regular waivers and was assigned to the minor leagues. If he clears again, he will become an unrestricted free agent. He would then be able to sign with any club he wanted, though he would not be eligible for the NHL playoffs.

The Devils have also recalled A.J. Greer and Kevin Bahl from the AHL, who will join the team in Toronto when they face the Maple Leafs this evening.

Jaros, 25, has actually not played a single game in the minor leagues this season, suiting up 11 times for the Devils instead. Originally selected 139th overall in 2015, he quickly rose through the ranks and was making his debut by the 2017-18 season with the Ottawa Senators. It looked as though he would quickly establish himself as a full-time NHL option, though after his progression stalled, he’s now bounced around and could be headed back to Europe.

In Bahl, the Devils have the big ticket from the Taylor Hall trade up with the big club, after his successful sophomore AHL campaign. The 6’6″ defenseman has 15 points in 49 games for the Utica Comets and from all accounts has taken a strong step forward in his development. He’s now played 11 games and is still looking for his first goal.

Petr Mrazek, Four Others Clear Waivers

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March 21: Mrazek, Clifford, Turris, Jaros, and Nash cleared waivers today ahead of the Trade Deadline. Sateri, Richardson, and Pouliot were all claimed.

March 20: The Toronto Maple Leafs have been dealing with goaltending issues for the past while, and after Erik Kallgren was given the net for the last several games, it was unclear where Petr Mrazek fit into the future of the team. Today, the Maple Leafs have offered Mrazek to the rest of the league by placing him on waivers according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. He is one of three Maple Leafs on the list today, joined by Kyle Clifford and Harri Sateri, a free agent goaltender the Maple Leafs have signed from the KHL, who has to clear waivers before he comes back to North America.

Those aren’t the only players on waivers though. The full list is as follows:

Riley Nash (ARI)
Brad Richardson (CGY)
Kyle Turris (EDM)
Christian Jaros (NJD)
Kyle Clifford (TOR)
Petr Mrazek (TOR)
Harri Sateri (TOR)
Derrick Pouliot (VGK)

Sateri, 32, just won an Olympic gold medal with Finland and has been an excellent netminder in the KHL for the last three seasons, but certainly doesn’t have a very long track record of success in North America. Drafted 106th overall back in 2008 by the San Jose Sharks, he struggled in parts of four minor league seasons before going to Russia. A few years later he was back with the Florida Panthers, where he played in nine NHL games and posted a .911 save percentage. After another sub-par year in the minors he was back overseas.

His signing, which will consist of a one-year contract that carries a cap hit of $750K through the end of this season, could be seen as nothing more than organizational depth at the deadline. With Mrazek’s struggles and placement on waivers today though, along with a recent injury to Jack Campbell, the Maple Leafs crease is completely up for grabs, even for a player like Sateri that is coming in fresh from outside the organization. That is of course as long as he clears, something that is certainly not a guarantee given how inexpensive his contract is.

It’s Mrazek that is the big name, given the fact that he signed a three-year, $11.4MM contract with the Maple Leafs just last summer. With a $3.8MM cap hit through 2023-24, a loan to the minor leagues would only clear $1.125MM for Toronto ahead of the deadline. With how quickly he has fallen out of favor with the Maple Leafs, Mrazek seems a prime buyout candidate for this offseason, should the team be unable to trade his contract elsewhere in the coming months.

Among the rest of the names are some veterans who could be snatched for a playoff run, though none are difference-makers at this point in their respective careers. Notably, for a player to be eligible for the rest of the AHL season and playoffs, he has to be on the roster at tomorrow’s deadline. For these players to get to that threshold, they needed to be placed on waivers today, if there was any thought of stashing them in the AHL down the stretch.

Harri Sateri, Brad Richardson, Derrick Pouliot Claimed On Waivers

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Trade Deadline day doesn’t mean trades are the only player movement. Three players were claimed on waivers today, with goalie Harri Sateri heading to Toronto from Arizona, forward Brad Richardson going to Vancouver from Calgary, and defenseman Derrick Pouliot going to Seattle from Vegas.

Sateri is a fresh NHL arrival. The Maple Leafs signed him to a contract yesterday, immediately placing him on re-entry waivers. Sateri had a .926 save percentage in 38 games with the KHL’s Novosibirsk Sibir this season, helping them to a 14-16-5 record with him in the net.

Richardson was placed on waivers yesterday as he’s been pushed out of the NHL lineup with the acquisitions of Tyler Toffoli and Calle Jarnkrok in Calgary. He had two goals and four points in 27 Flames games this year, and he’ll get a chance to supplement Vancouver’s bottom-six forward group as Brandon Sutter remains out with long COVID symptoms.

Pouliot signed an NHL contract earlier in the week after Vegas’ blueline was continually struck with injuries. He got into two games, notching one assist before the team attempted to send him back to AHL Henderson. He’ll now get another NHL shot in Seattle as they continue to ship out players at the deadline.

Anaheim Ducks Claim Gerry Mayhew

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The Anaheim Ducks have decided to claim minor league star Gerry Mayhew off waivers from the Philadelphia Flyers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

Mayhew, 29, has been a top goal scorer in the AHL for several years, including a 39-goal season in 2019-20 with the Iowa Wild. Unfortunately, that minor league success hasn’t translated to much playing time in the NHL, with Mayhew suiting up just 42 times in his career so far. Twenty-five of those have come this season with the Flyers, resulting in six goals (and no assists).

The undrafted forward will now take his talents to the west coast, where the Ducks have sold off several pieces over the last few days. Among the outgoing names was Nicolas Deslauriers, meaning they have some minutes available up front. While Mayhew is certainly not a Deslauriers replacement in style, he at least can give them a bit more depth down the stretch and perhaps even add a few more of those goals.

Signed to a one-year, two-way contract that comes with an NHL cap hit of $800K, Mayhew cannot be assigned to the minor leagues and will stay on Anaheim’s NHL roster for the time being. Importantly, that also means that he won’t be eligible to play in the AHL down the stretch or into the playoffs, as he won’t be there at tomorrow’s roster deadline.

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.

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