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Biron clears waivers, uncertain about future

Martin Biron

New York Rangers’ goalie Martin Biron deflects a shot during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Minnesota Wild, Saturday, Nov. 20, 2010, in St. Paul, Minn. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)

AP

Veteran Rangers goalie Martin Biron cleared waivers on Tuesday, but it’s unclear what lies ahead.

Biron, 36, will reportedly take a few days to figure out if he’ll report to AHL Hartford or consider retirement, according to TVA’s Louis Jean.

It’s been an odd past few weeks for the longtime NHLer. Things began strangely at Rangers’ training camp -- Biron was absent for the first two days with an unspecified personal issue, forcing the Blueshirts to bring in Johan Hedberg on a PTO.

Upon his return, Biron spoke guardedly about his absence:

“I’m where I need to be. I’m focused and I’m really where I wanted to be this morning.

“I was excited to be here. I was excited to be on the ice and get going with the guys, definitely. I’m not going to go into details, it’s just how life is sometimes and you’ve got to roll with it.

“Again, I was fortunate I was able to get home and now to be back.”

According to ESPN New York, Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault “appear unconvinced” about Biron as the club’s backup right from start of camp. Vigneault’s opinion went unchanged early in the regular season -- strengthened, even -- after Biron went 0-1-0 in two appearances with a 7.61 GAA and .763 save percentage.

“It’s a performance-based business, and the organization felt Marty’s first two performances were not what we expected, [so] we decided to put him on waivers,” Vigneault said. “We’re gonna get together this afternoon as a group and talk about where we go from there.”

What’s odd is that, statistically speaking, Biron’s been one of the NHL’s best backup goalies over the last two years.

He didn’t play much in 2013, but was solid when called upon, posting a 2-2-1 record with a .917 save percentage and 2.32 GAA.

The year prior he appeared in 21 games, posting a 12-6-2 record with a .904 save percentage and 2.46 GAA.

He was also lauded for a strong working relationship with starter Henrik Lundqvist.

Biron could accept his fate with the Rangers and report to the American League, a place he hasn’t played since a rehab assignment during the 2009-10 campaign. Teammate Arron Asham, who was placed on waivers as well, has already said he’d report to Hartford.