NHL teams hand out PTO invites for training camp to some unlikely candidates, but the Minnesota Wild might just take the cake.
The Wild raised some eyebrows by handing Ryan Malone a tryout offer.
Malone, 37, hasn’t seen NHL action since 2014-15. That run was even limited, as he only played six regular-season games with the New York Rangers before spending most of his time in the AHL.
Even then, Malone was something of a reclamation project after experiencing personal issues toward the end of his run with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It sounds like he’s a significant long shot to make the big club, even by PTO standards.
Ryan Malone will come to #mnwild camp on a PTO. Possibly could AHL deal and be Olympic eligible
— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) August 31, 2017
If nothing else, there’s an answer to the question “Whatever happened to Ryan Malone?”