A healthy scratch in all but four games this season, veteran defenseman Roman Hamrlik has been placed on waivers by the Washington Capitals.
Hamrlik, 38, is in the final year of a two-year, $7 million contract. His salary (prorated) and cap hit for this season is $3.5 million.
Hamrlik was drafted first overall by Tampa Bay in 1992. He’s played 1,383 career games and scored 638 points for the Lightning, Oilers, Islanders, Flames, Canadiens and Capitals.
In 2011-12, he suited up 68 times for the Caps in the regular season, scoring twice and adding 11 assists while averaging 19:13 per game. He also appeared in all 14 Washington playoff games (1G, 3A, 22:17).
Update (5:06 p.m. ET):Coach Adam Oates said #Caps waived Hamrlik to try and get him an opportunity to play somewhere. No plans to assign him to AHL if he clears.
— Katie Carrera (@kcarrera) March 5, 2013
In other club news, the Caps have signed tough defenseman Steven Oleksy to a one-year contract and recalled him from AHL Hershey.
They’ve also placed defenseman Mike Green (groin) on injured reserve; he’s eligible to return Thursday versus Florida.
Washington hosts Boston tonight.