Four NHL Teams Who Could Face Big Waiver Wire Decisions

It's a double-edged sword for the player development staff of every NHL team. 

Most draft picks are not plug-and-play NHLers, and patience is paramount in developing prospects to get them NHL-ready. But at the same time, the waiver clock is ticking. 

Inevitably, there comes a point where prospects can no longer be left to marinate in the minors. Meanwhile, the impressive youngsters who cement their spots on the big club can't be re-assigned to work on their games or open up a roster spot without passing through waivers, where they could be scooped up by rivals.

To start this summer's waiver conversation: a round of applause for the six first-round draft picks from 2020 who have quickly exhausted their waiver eligibility. 

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Jamie Drysdale, the lone defenseman, and Seth Jarvis are the only members of the group to have spent any time in the AHL — Drysdale spent 14 games with the San Diego Gulls, while Jarvis played nine matches for the Chicago Wolves as rookies in 2020-21.

One player from the class of 2021 has also completed his waiver-exempt period. J.J. Moser had just turned 21 when he was drafted out of Switzerland by the Arizona Coyotes, so his exempt period lasted just 80 games instead of the 160 games granted to the younger members of his class.

Selected in the second round at No. 60, Moser has quickly established himself as a regular on the Coyotes. Through two pro seasons in North America, he has already logged 125 NHL games.

The NHL's waiver rules have more layers than corporate cybersecurity — and still carry an additional wrinkle of extra complexity due to pro-rating from the shortened 2020-21 season. 

Here, we won't get bogged down by the details. Instead, we'll take a look at a handful of players whose waiver status will affect their team's roster decisions heading into the 2023-24 season.

Akira Schmid, G, New Jersey Devils

At 22, the lanky Swiss stopper announced himself as New Jersey's potential goalie of the future when he outduelled Igor Shesterkin to earn the Devils their first playoff series win since 2012. 

But don't be in too much of a hurry to pencil Schmid into a slot with the big club this fall. The fifth-round pick from 2018 is going into the final season of the entry-level contract he signed in 2021. And of the 60 waivers-free games he was awarded, Schmid still has 27 remaining — and two more years of potentially waivers-free status.

Schmid's overall body of work at the NHL level has been impressive so far. But by goalie standards, it's minuscule. And at 23, he's still a young buck at his position. 

On July 1, the Devils signed 26-year-old Erik Kallgren as an inexpensive depth option. He's also waiver exempt this season, as is 22-year-old Nico Daws. 

So Lindy Ruff already has options, but with the Devils now knocking at the door of 'contender' status, they've been rumored to be in the market for one of the more established stoppers who could be available this summer, like Connor Hellebuyck or John Gibson.

If Tom Fitzgerald decides to make that deal, he'll easily be able to stash Schmid in Utica to continue his development.

The Blues Jackets' Young Guns

Mike Babcock is the new sheriff in Columbus. And as the Blue Jackets try to get back into contention in the Metropolitan Division, it's not unreasonable to wonder how many of his team's high-end young forwards he'll be comfortable icing when the regular season begins.

Fresh off his third overall selection in Nashville and an immediate decision to forego the rest of his college eligibility and turn pro, will Adam Fantilli be gifted with a roster spot? 

In the fall of 2021, No. 12 pick Cole Sillinger made the big club out of camp and stuck around all year, picking up 31 points. He then dealt with a bit of a sophomore slump and spent 11 games in the AHL to close out the 2022-23 regular season. 

With 143 NHL games already on his resumé, Sillinger's waiver-exempt status will only last for another 17 games — which may hurt his chances of cracking Babcock's opening-night lineup.

Kirill Marchenko is also close to hitting the threshold. Drafted in the second round back in 2018, the Russian right-winger was 21 when he signed his entry-level contract with Columbus last May. But for waiver purposes, he was considered 22 because he signed his contract before his birthday, so that gives him only 70 waiver-exempt games.

Marchenko started last season in Cleveland but showed an impressive scoring touch when he was called up to the big club in December. He finished with 21 goals in 59 games with the Blue Jackets and even picked up some Calder Trophy votes. But in a similar situation to Sillinger, he'll have just 11 waiver-exempt NHL games available this season. Marchenko will need to blow Babcock's socks off to start the season in Columbus.

Like Fantilli, Kent Johnson and Yegor Chinakhov will be easier for Babcock to insert into the young gun spots in his lineup. Johnson hasn't played in Cleveland yet, while Chinakhov has played just eight AHL games over two seasons. Both forwards will remain waiver exempt for most of the upcoming season. 

Nils Hoglander, LW, Vancouver Canucks

With a glut of wingers in their system, the Vancouver Canucks assigned their two top picks from the 2019 draft to their minor-league affiliate in Abbotsford for the first time last winter. 

Nils Hoglander thrived, putting up 32 points in 45 regular-season AHL games and chipping in a team-leading point per game in the playoffs. For his efforts, he agreed to a two-year second contract on Sunday, with a cap hit of $1.1 million per season. 

But Hoglander won't be waiver exempt this fall, so the Canucks will need to find a spot for him on their main roster if they don't want to risk exposing him during a potential AHL assignment. 

The log jam up front hasn't changed much. Vitali Kravtsov has gone back to Russia, but nothing has come of the persistent rumors that the Canucks have tried to get out from under the contracts of Conor Garland and/or Brock Boeser. Also, injured wingers Ilya Mikheyev (ACL surgery) and Tanner Pearson (hand injury) are both believed to be on the road to recovery and should be looking to re-claim their roster spots this fall.

Vasily Podkolzin still has 42 waiver-exempt games available, so he'd be easy to send down again before opening day.

On the back end, keep an eye on Jett Woo. Selected in the second round in 2018, Woo's a right-shot defenseman with size and physicality whose development has been slowed by injuries and pandemic challenges. 

But Woo had a pretty solid season last year in Abbotsford. A late birthday who turns 23 later this month, he has not had a sniff of an NHL game to date but will no longer be exempt from waivers this fall. 

After they bought out Oliver Ekman-Larsson, the Canucks loaded up on veteran blueliners in free agency, signing Carson Soucy, Ian Cole and Matt Irwin to supplement their current core. As coach Rick Tocchet conducts his first training camp this September, can Woo do enough to earn a longer look and make the organization concerned about the possibility of losing him on waivers?

Raphael Lavoie, C, Edmonton Oilers

Lavoie is another player whose waiver eligibility has expired without him seeing a single NHL game.

This fall, with cap space at a premium, the Oilers will need to find a spot on the opening-night roster for the 38th overall pick from 2019 or risk exposing the 22-year-old to waivers. 

Though Lavoie was drafted as a center, he was listed last season as a right wing with the Bakersfield Condors, where he finished second in team scoring with 45 points in 61 games, and nine of his 25 AHL goals were game-winners. 

Lavoie has good size at 6-foot-4 and was listed at 215 pounds last season. He'll be raw, but he'll also provide a different dimension to Edmonton's forward group if he cracks the lineup.