Senators' Two Waiver Losses This Season Are Now Both Vancouver Canucks

The Vancouver Canucks seem to have developed a fondness for former Ottawa Senators.

Both players the Senators have lost on waivers this season are now members of the Canucks organization, following Vancouver's claim of defenceman Cameron Crotty from the Minnesota Wild this week.

The Senators placed Crotty on waivers in late October, hoping to send him to Belleville. Instead, the Minnesota Wild claimed the 27-year-old Ottawa native, bringing his time with his hometown club to an end.

But Crotty's NHL stay in Minnesota turned out to be brief.

This week, the Wild attempted to send him to their own AHL affiliate by placing him back on waivers. That's when the Canucks stepped in, putting in a successful claim of their own.

Crotty was originally selected by the Arizona Coyotes in the third round of the 2017 NHL Draft. The 6-foot-3, right-shot defenceman appeared in six games for the Senators last season and another three this season before being placed on waivers.

He was primarily a depth option for the Senators, providing insurance on D while splitting his time between the NHL and AHL.

In hindsight, the Sens might have been wise to keep Crotty around as their seventh D instead of 21-year-old Carter Yakemchuk, who's been a healthy scratch in five the past six games.

As for Meriläinen, the Canucks got him directly from the Senators on September 25 after the Senators exposed him to waivers during training camp. Meriläinen will best be remembered here for his fantastic run as the club's emergency starter two years ago. 

In 12 appearances in relief of injured goalies Linus Ullmark and Anton Forsberg, Meriläinen went 8-3-1 with a 1.99 goals against average and a .925 save percentage. Without him, the Sens probably would have missed the playoffs for an eighth straight season.

That led the Sens to believe he was ready for full-time backup duty last season, but things didn't pan out. He appeared in 20 NHL games, posting an 8-10-1 record with a 3.51 goals-against average and an .860 save percentage. He was eventually sent back to Belleville and replaced with free agent backup James Reimer.

Crotty and Meriläinen weren't expected to play a major role in Ottawa this season, but losing both assets for nothing wasn't ideal. That's how it goes when you have a team with depth. The rules are set up to make sure NHL-level players don't get buried in the minors.

Of course, both men are glad to be wanted in the NHL, but at 3-16-1, they're now hoping the Canucks have better days ahead.

By Steve Warne
The Hockey News Ottawa