The Edmonton Oilers placed defenseman Sheldon Souray on waivers, reports TSN.
The Edmonton Oilers are giving the NHL’s 29 other teams a chance at acquiring Sheldon Souray, as the team placed the veteran defenceman on waivers on Friday.
Souray signed a five-year contract in 2007 that was supposed to see him in Edmonton through the end of the 2011-12 season, and the 33-year-old’s no-move clause has expired.
The Oilers defenceman gave GM Steve Tambellini a list of preferences back in January in the event that he would be shipped out before the March 3 trading deadline. Souray was also on the record as saying he’d waive his no-movement clause if the circumstances were to his liking.
The most likely scenario, however, is that a team might pick him up once he goes into the re-entry waiver process. If that were to happen, the Oilers would assume half (or $2.7 million) of the cap hit and salary expenses while Souray’s new team would foot the other 50 percent of the bill. Souray isn’t a very desirable defenseman at his age and injury-prone level when his price tag is $5.4 million, but at half that cost he’s a much better deal.
While significant players only get claimed on re-entry waivers every so often, it does happen in the NHL. Take, for instance, the Sean Avery fiasco in Dallas. The Stars gave Avery a four-year deal worth just under $16 million, yet now Dallas and the Rangers are paying him $1.937 million each to pester people at Madison Square Garden.
There’s no guarantee the Oilers will be able to get rid of the now-troubling player, but we’ll let you know if someone does snatch up Souray.