The New York Islanders announced that embattled goalie Jaroslav Halak cleared waivers on Saturday, so he’ll report to the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
One would assume that the league’s other 29 teams simply believed that Halak isn’t worth the risk considering his pricey cap hit ($4.5 million), especially since that deal won’t expire until after the 2017-18 season.
Meanwhile, this likely comes as a relief for the Islanders, even if it’s far from a pretty situation.
Halak’s agent made noise about the awkward three-goalie rotation that the Islanders have been employing for some time, a measure that reportedly prompted GM Garth Snow to send out an email fielding trade offers for the veteran goalie.
Snow either received no takers or wasn’t happy with the offers, as the Islanders risked losing him to a waiver claim.
Instead, Halak is bound for Bridgeport while the Islanders are down to two goalies (Thomas Greiss and Jean-Francois Berube). They’ll also save a decent chunk of change:
Halak has cleared waivers & will report to Bridgeport of the #AHL. The assignment saves the #Islanders $950K ($527,777 prorated) on the cap. https://t.co/oBwAxBBzYx
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) December 31, 2016
Overall, the last few months have been quite unkind to both Halak and the Islanders. Don’t be shocked if this is far from the final chapter in this dramatic (and often dismal) saga.