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Waivers: Oduya to Flyers; No one claims Burrows

Colorado Avalanche v Ottawa Senators

OTTAWA, CANADA - MARCH 2: Alexandre Burrows #14 of the Ottawa Senators looks on during a face-off agaisnt the Colorado Avalanche during an NHL game at Canadian Tire Centre on March 2, 2017 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Francois Laplante/Freestyle Photography/Getty Images)

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GMs are busy during these late dates in the trade deadline, and that goes beyond merely working the phones to try to get a good deal.

The waiver wire is another scene of noteworthy activity, even if sometimes the most interesting activities come in teams passing on claiming someone off of waivers. This is one of those cases. Let’s look at what happened:


  • The Senators placed Alex Burrows on waivers, but no dice. Burrows’ experience feels like a microcosm of the Sens: his situation is in question almost a year to the day after being traded to Ottawa in exchange for prospect Jonathan Dahlen. It was a controversial decision at the time, and the Senators doubled down by signing Burrows to a two-year, $5 million contract extension.

Whether he heads to the AHL or just hovers around in Ottawa, that $2.5M lingers in 2018-19. Not great for a team that’s pinching pennies.


  • A different Senators player did get claimed, as the Philadelphia Flyers grabbed aging defenseman Johnny Oduya. This gives a young group a veteran presence, even if Oduya’s on the decline. Meanwhile, the Flyers waived Mark Alt, who was summarily claimed by the Colorado Avalanche.


  • The Calgary Flames love their beefy players who can score at a modest clip. They paid big money for Troy Brouwer, only to see him go from a nice-enough scorer to a modest one. With some injury questions lingering in a few spots, the Flames claimed Chris Stewart from the Wild.

Bruce Boudreau is clearly still fond of Stewart.

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Chances are, these players aren’t going to be huge difference-makers, but some might argue the same for a lot of players involved in today’s trades. At least in these cases, waiver claims only cost teams roster spots and cap space.

More: PHT’s 2018 Trade Deadline Tracker.


James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.