LAS VEGAS — If the writing wasn’t already on the wall for Ryan Reaves, it popped out in three dimensions six days ago in New York City.
Asked why the frequently scratched 38-year-old fourth-liner would be re-entering the Toronto Maple Leafs’ lineup for the first time in 24 days, head coach Craig Berube didn’t even bother to extol the player’s virtues of energy or physicality or personality — all of which are off the charts, admirable and the reason a guy with 63 career goals has carved out a 912-game, 15-year run in the NHL.
Reaves was playing for the sole purpose of neutralizing Rangers tough nut Matt Rempe.
That is simply not reason enough to keep Reaves on the roster when his on-ice contributions have shrunk to an on-ice average of 7:48 in 35 scattered games and his cap hit ($1.35 million) outweighs his value.
Reaves was placed on waivers Thursday, and the Maple Leafs will clear an active spot and bury $1.15 million in the minors, according to PuckPedia.com, should he clear Friday.
-
-
Watch Hockey Central Trade Deadline on Sportsnet
Sportsnet’s hockey news breakers, analysts and reporters will have coast-to-coast coverage of all the moves made ahead of this season’s NHL trade deadline. Full coverage on March 7 begins at 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+.
They’ll free up the entire $1.35 million if Reaves gets scooped off the wire at 2 p.m. ET.
Reaves has one more fight this season than he has goals (zero) and one fewer than he has assists (two).
He has another full season beyond this one on his contract. General manager Brad Treliving needed to give Reaves that extra term to pry him away from Bill Guerin’s Minnesota Wild in free agency in the summer of 2023.
Happily catching up post-game Wednesday night in Vegas with a cluster of his former Golden Knights teammates, a healthy-scratched Reaves has been acutely aware of his tumble down the depth chart.
Getting into Toronto’s lineup had become an even more difficult task with depth wingers Cale Järnkrok and Connor Dewar returning to health.
“Just making sure I’m hanging out with boys as much as I can,” Reaves said Friday. “Just kind of keeping my mind fresh and not getting too distracted with the situation.”
Treliving — a Reaves truther since way back, and a GM who tried to acquire the enforcer in his Calgary days — waited until the final possible day to waive one of the NHL’s most enduring and affable personalities.
The Maple Leafs are clearing way for a trade acquisition of unknown impact within the next 24 hours.
They, along with powerhouses Dallas and Florida, are among the teams trying to acquire Mikko Rantanen from the Carolina Hurricanes.
Treliving also has interest in St. Louis’s Brayden Schenn, Philadelphia’s Scott Laughton and New York’s Brock Nelson (should the Islanders rent their centre to the highest bidder).
Clearing Reaves’ salary was a necessary step — he’s more expensive than other waiver candidates such as Dewar or Conor Timmins — to accommodate incoming talent. And he’s more likely to clear.
Tyler Pitlick (Boston), Riley Stillman (Carolina), Evan Cormier (Florida) and Cameron Hevig (Utah) were also placed on waivers Thursday as teams juggle their rosters in advance of the trade deadline.
Jesse Puljujarvi (Florida) cleared waivers, while a rebuilding Nashville claimed Jakub Vrana (from Washington) and Jordan Oesterle (Boston).
The wild-card-hunting Columbus snatched Christian Fischer off waivers from Detroit.
