The St. Louis Blues placed veteran winger Brandon Saad on waivers Tuesday, shortly after general manager Doug Armstrong announced the move was coming.
Saad, 32, has seven goals and 16 points in 43 games this season and remains signed through next season at a cap hit of $4.5 million.
Armstrong said Saad will be assigned to the AHL should he clear waivers, which would give the Blues just over $1.1 million in salary cap relief.
“I talked to he and his representative. If he gets claimed, he’ll be on a new team,” Armstrong said. “If not, he’ll go down to play in Springfield. That will open up some space for different players that I’d like to see get in the lineup. So we’ll see where it goes.”
“There’s been a group that’s been here for a while and things don’t seem to be changing. Collectively you have to start chipping further and further up.”
A two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Chicago Blackhawks, Saad was listed on the first TSN Trade Bait board earlier this month.
He posted 26 goals and 42 points in 82 games last season. Over the course of 906 career games, Saad has 260 goals and 515 points.
Waiving Saad comes as he mired in a six-game point drought and nine-game goal drought. He saw 11:58 of ice time in Monday’s 5-2 loss to the Vancouver Canucks.
The Blues enter play Tuesday sitting five points back of the Calgary Flames for the final wild-card spot in the Western Conference with three more games played.
The St. Louis Blues have placed veteran forward Brandon Saad on waivers today. Saad, who was acquired by the team in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche in July, has struggled to find his scoring touch this season, recording just five goals and seven assists in 37 games.
The 29-year-old winger, who has played over 600 games in the NHL, has seen his ice time decrease in recent weeks as he has struggled to produce offensively. The Blues are hoping that placing Saad on waivers will give him a chance to reset and potentially find his game in the AHL.
It’s a surprising move for the Blues, who had high hopes for Saad when they acquired him in the offseason. However, with the team currently out of a playoff spot, they may be looking to shake things up and try to spark some more offense from their lineup.
It remains to be seen if any team will claim Saad off waivers, or if he will clear and be assigned to the Blues’ AHL affiliate. Regardless, it’s clear that the team is looking to make changes in order to get back on track in the second half of the season.
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St. Louis Blues, Brandon Saad, waivers, NHL, hockey, veteran player, roster move
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