Montreal Canadiens Claim Rem Pitlick
The Montreal Canadiens have added a little bit of forward depth, claiming Rem Pitlick off waivers from the Minnesota Wild. It’s the second time that Pitlick has been claimed this season, after the Wild took him from the Nashville Predators at the beginning of the year.
It’s certainly an interesting claim for the Canadiens, who have been ravaged by injuries this season and don’t have a lot to play for down the stretch. Pitlick, 24, is a capable offensive player with 11 points in 20 games for the Wild this season but wasn’t being used very much in the more competitive matchups. In fact, in three of his last four games for Minnesota, Pitlick had seen less than seven minutes of ice time.
That likely won’t be the case in Montreal, where he’ll suddenly be among many other forwards that have as little NHL experience as him.
It’s also a familiar name for the Canadiens organization, given they selected his brother Rhett Pitlick in the fifth round of the 2019 draft. That Pitlick, still just 20 years old, is in his freshman season for the University of Minnesota.
Adding relatively young talent through whatever means is necessary for the Canadiens as they look to turn around a franchise that hit rock bottom this season. Even if Pitlick doesn’t turn out to be more than he has shown to this point, he is still an asset that they grabbed for nothing more than the low cost of a waiver claim.
Unfortunately, despite him being 24, Pitlick is likely headed for unrestricted free agency in the summer. With just 31 games played to this point in his career, he’ll qualify for Group VI UFA status should he fail to play in 49 more this season (the Canadiens have 48 remaining).
Rem Pitlick Placed On Waivers
The Minnesota Wild have placed Rem Pitlick on waivers, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. The 24-year-old forward was claimed off waivers by Minnesota earlier this season, meaning the Nashville Predators could potentially send him directly to the minor leagues if they are the only team to put in a claim this time around.
Through 20 games with Minnesota, he actually has six goals and 11 points, but has seen his ice time drop to just a handful of minutes over the last while. In Saturday’s game against the Washington Capitals, Pitlick played just 5:35 and seemed obviously on his way out of the lineup. With Joel Eriksson Ek approaching a return and Kirill Kaprizov avoiding major injury, Pitlick’s time in Minnesota could be over.
Should he clear, the team could send him to the minor leagues but not the taxi squad. Since he was on the active roster for most of the season, he isn’t eligible to be placed there despite his salary being under the $1MM threshold. Pitlick is on a one-year, two-way deal that carries a cap hit of $917,831 and will be a Group VI unrestricted free agent at the end of the year unless he plays in an additional 59 games this season.
Lucas Elvenes Claimed By Anaheim Ducks
Jan 11: Perhaps even more surprisingly, the Anaheim Ducks have actually claimed Elvenes, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. That would mean his contract will not be terminated and he will not be able to pursue an opportunity back in Sweden at this time.
Jan 10: In a surprising move, the Vegas Golden Knights have placed Lucas Elvenes on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a contract termination, according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Elvenes is in the final year of his entry-level contract and would have been a restricted free agent in the summer. This move will make him an unrestricted free agent, potentially opening a return to Sweden or another overseas league.
While contract terminations do happen from time to time, this one is surprising only because of Elvenes’ success in the minor leagues for the Golden Knights organization. Selected in the fifth round of the team’s inaugural draft, the Swedish forward eventually came to North America to make his debut in 2019. In 59 games as a rookie for the Chicago Wolves, he scored 48 points and went to the AHL All-Star Game.
In the years since Elvenes has racked up 34 points in 57 games, but just two of his 20 career AHL goals have come this season. Perhaps it’s that diminishing offensive performance that has him looking for a fresh start, or simply the fact that he hasn’t earned a single call-up to this point.
Now 22, Elvenes will still be a player to watch in the coming years even if he returns to Europe for the rest of this season. A successful SHL player even before he came to the Golden Knights organization, he will likely pique the interest of an NHL team down the road.
San Jose Sharks Terminate Evander Kane’s Contract
Jan 9: Kane has cleared waivers according to Chris Johnston of TSN. His contract will be terminated, though the NHLPA intends on filing a grievance on his behalf.
Jan 8: The Sharks are parting ways with Evander Kane as the winger is on unconditional waivers for the purpose of terminating his contract. The team has released the following statement:
The San Jose Sharks have informed Evander Kane that he has been placed on unconditional waivers with intent to terminate his contract for breach of his NHL Standard Player Contract and for violation of the AHL COVID-19 protocols.
By taking this approach, the Sharks believe that they can get out of the rest of Kane’s contract without any further money owed or cap hit charged. But with $19MM in salary and signing bonuses owed over the next three seasons plus the remainder of a pro-rated $7MM salary this season, Kane will almost certainly be grieving this in the coming days once he goes unclaimed on Sunday. In fact, the NHLPA has already officially responded to the situation:
We are aware of the San Jose Sharks’ stated intent to terminate Evander Kane’s contract. The NHLPA intends to challenge any such action by filing a grievance.
The 30-year-old had been the subject of multiple investigations in recent months, stemming from gambling and abuse allegations which were ruled to be unsubstantiated. However, he received a 21-game suspension at the start of the season for using a fake vaccination card and after being cleared to return, was immediately waived and sent to AHL San Jose. Kane was actually quite productive with the Barracuda, notching eight points in five games before testing positive for COVID in late December. As Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports, the reason for the release stems from a flight that Kane took during his isolation period as well as his return date to the team.
Players being on unconditional waivers during the season isn’t anything new – it happens fairly routinely with players in the minors and teams agreeing to go their separate ways. It’s also used in the summer during buyout windows; there is no buyout window during the regular season. But for a team to unilaterally use it to try to get out of a deal is much less common. Tampa Bay did it with Jake Dotchin back in 2018 but he caught on elsewhere soon after and his grievance was settled ten months later.
The most notable time it was used was when the Kings did it with Mike Richards back in 2015 with the team saying he had committed a material breach of his contract, similar language to what San Jose used in their statement. That one was also grieved and the two sides eventually settled on a payout of $11MM between 2015 and 2032 with Richards remaining on the Kings’ books through that time at varying rates but well below the original $5.75MM AAV. On the surface, it would appear that the Sharks could be trying to go a similar route here with any possible settlement being amortized over a long enough period of time to make the cap situation much more desirable than it had would have been if they continued to keep him on the books. Worth noting, back in 2015, Friedman noted that the NHLPA received assurances that Richards’ situation wouldn’t be considered as a precedent which is something Kane and his camp will certainly be pointing out.
While they will proceed with the termination on Sunday, this situation is almost certainly far from fully being settled. In the meantime, Kane will technically become an unrestricted free agent upon his release. If he signs before the March 21st trade deadline, he will be eligible to play in the playoffs while if he doesn’t find a new team right away, he would be eligible to play in the Olympics next month.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman was the first to report Kane was on unconditional waivers.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Nick Ritchie Clears Waivers
Jan 7: Ritchie has cleared waivers according to TSN’s Chris Johnston. With Mitch Marner and Pierre Engvall entering the COVID protocol, the forward will likely remain on the active roster for the time being.
Jan 6: According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Toronto Maple Leafs placed forward Nick Ritchie on waivers today.
Many of Toronto’s offseason gambles have worked out perfectly for them, but that hasn’t been the case with Ritchie. He has just a goal and seven assists through 30 games.
After starting the season with the chance to shine alongside Auston Matthews, he floundered in that role and was soon demoted to the fourth line. He was far more effective there playing with veterans Jason Spezza and Wayne Simmonds, but with Ilya Mikheyev returning to the lineup and the Leafs now with a fully healthy roster, the team needed space and cap relief.
Ritchie and his $2.5MM cap hit was the odd man out. He’s signed through 2022-23 as well, so it’s extremely unlikely another team stakes a claim on the 26-year-old forward.
Arizona Coyotes Claim Riley Nash
Jan. 6: Nash is now on the way to his third team this season. Friedman reports that the Arizona Coyotes claimed Nash on Thursday, adding to arguably the thinnest forward depth in the league.
Jan. 5: A veteran center is available once again, as the Tampa Bay Lightning have placed Riley Nash on waivers according to Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet. Nash was claimed from the Winnipeg Jets last month and played 10 games for the Lightning while they dealt with various injuries and absences.
Now, with Nikita Kucherov nearing a return and Anthony Cirelli back from his COVID absence, the Lightning no longer require Nash at the NHL level. By placing him on waivers, they would be able to stash him on the taxi squad should no other team put in a claim. The Jets could also send him directly to the minors or taxi squad if they decide to claim Nash and are the only team to do so.
That’s certainly no guarantee though, as there are several teams around the league who could probably use an experienced option while they deal with massive COVID-related absences. The fact that Nash earns the league minimum of $750K also suggests someone else could put in a claim.
A veteran of more than 600 NHL games, it’s been a struggle offensively for the 32-year-old center over the last few years. After reaching a career-high of 15 goals and 41 points in 2017-18, he became basically a defense-only option in his next few stops. Since the start of the 2018-19 season with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Nash has registered 10 goals and 33 points in 204 games.
Victor Rask, Zane McIntyre Clear Waivers
Jan 5: Both players have cleared waivers, according to Michael Russo of The Athletic. Rask is expected to be assigned to the taxi squad, where the Wild will receive $1.125MM in cap relief. McIntyre will be assigned to the Iowa Wild.
Jan 4: Per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, the Minnesota Wild placed forward Victor Rask and goalie Zane McIntyre on waivers today.
While McIntyre wasn’t in the Wild organization prior to today, the waiver placement means that he signed an NHL contract with the Wild today. He was previously with the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners on an AHL contract, appearing in three games and posting a .904 save percentage to go with a 2-1-0 record.
McIntyre has spent time on NHL rosters over the past few years but hasn’t gotten into a game since he played eight with the Boston Bruins in 2016-17. Those are the only eight NHL games he has under his belt, but he’s been a capable enough AHL man over the years and that’s the role he’ll play in Minnesota.
Rask’s waiver placement is partially salary-motivated, as the 28-year-old forward is in the last year of a contract that carries a $4MM cap hit. If he clears waivers, the Wild can save roughly $1MM on that hit while he’s in the minors.
He has four goals and six assists in 21 games this season, occasionally serving as a healthy scratch.
James Neal Clears Waivers
Jan 3: Neal has cleared waivers according to Friedman meaning he can now be sent to the taxi squad or minor leagues.
Jan 2: The St. Louis Blues placed forward James Neal on waivers today, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
Neal did have an impressive training camp with the Blues which led to a one-year, league-minimum contract, but he hasn’t retained that same magic in the regular season. The embattled former 40-goal scorer has just two goals and two assists through 17 games this season.
With the Blues continuing to get back to full health, there’s no clear spot for Neal at the NHL level anymore. He’s been surpassed on the depth chart by names like Logan Brown and Klim Kostin, making him expendable.
Teams have until 1 p.m. CT tomorrow to put in a claim for Neal.
Michael Sgarbossa Clears Waivers
Dec 29: According to CapFriendly, Sgarbossa has cleared waivers and can now be assigned to the taxi squad or minor leagues.
Dec 28: The Washington Capitals have placed Michael Sgarbossa on waivers today, allowing them to move him to the taxi squad or minor leagues should he clear. He did just that in October, but after spending the last month on the roster he needed to again before being sent down.
Sgarbossa, 29, has played in seven games for the Capitals this season, joining them when injuries and illnesses started hitting hard at the end of November. He’s scored two goals and three points in those games, but with Evgeny Kuznetsov and Nicklas Backstrom returning from the COVID protocol, wasn’t really needed on the active roster anymore.
The risk of a claim, however, seems to be much higher now given the situation many teams in the league find themselves in. With players entering the COVID protocol every day, Sgarbossa would certainly offer more than many of the inexperienced call-ups that have been used. The longtime professional has 62 games at the NHL level over his career and nearly 500 in the AHL.
Two Players Clear Waivers
Sunday: Both Sautner and Provolnev have cleared waivers, with the latter expected to return to Russia immediately.
Saturday: A pair of players are on the waiver wire today as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports (Twitter link) that the Canucks have placed defenceman Ashton Sautner on waivers while the Coyotes have put blueliner Vladislav Provolnev on unconditional waivers for the purpose of contract termination.
Sautner, whose previously-reported deal from earlier today is now official, was set to join Vancouver for their game tonight against Toronto. However, Vancouver announced (Twitter link) that both this game and Sunday’s contest against Arizona have been postponed so it appears they may not need the 27-year-old after all which likely has led to him being waived so quickly after being signed.
As for Provolnev, he signed a one-year deal with the Coyotes back in March after spending the past five years as a regular in the KHL. However, the 26-year-old was sent to AHL Tucson soon after the season started and hasn’t been recalled since. In 17 games with the Roadrunners, he has one assist along with 10 penalty minutes and a team-worst -17 plus/minus rating. The move suggests that he will likely head back to the KHL once he clears on Sunday and Arizona will free up a contract slot, bringing them to 45 out of the maximum of 50.