The Toronto Maple Leafs placed their off-season signing on waivers on Friday.
The Nicolas Aube-Kubel era in Toronto is officially over.
The Washing Capitals claimed the forward off waivers on Saturday, one day after the Maple Leafs made him available.
"It didn't go well for him and how we were using him," Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said of Aube-Kubel on Wednesday. "It just hasn't quite happened here for him."
Aube-Kubel won the Stanley Cup with the Colorado Avalanche in June. He signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the Maple Leafs in July.
Toronto Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas told reporters in the summer that Keefe identified Aube-Kubel as someone who can help offset the speed lost in the depth players like Ilya Mikheyev.
Aube-Kubel has no points this season and played the first five games of the regular season on the right wing of Zach Aston-Reese and David Kampf. He had been a healthy scratch for five out of the last six games.
How this affects the Maple Leafs going forward
With Aube-Kubel off the Maple Leafs active roster, the club has an open spot available to activate defenseman Timothy Liljegren, who will make his season debut on Saturday against the Boston Bruins.
Liljegren had hernia surgery before training camp opened up in September.
The Maple Leafs visit the Capitals on Dec. 17.
From a roster management standpoint, the Leafs move from the maximum-allowable 50 NHL contracts to 49 and will now have some added flexibility to make other moves within the organization.
Most clubs stay away from the maximum threshold for this reason and Toronto has a little bit of breathing room after the latest acquisition.