September 14, 2012 12:04 PM
The Hurricanes began what will be a series of procedural moves prior to the would-be expiration of the NHL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement on Friday, placing 11 players on waivers.
 Due to their combination of age and experience, players in that group require waivers in order to be sent to Charlotte and play during the upcoming AHL season. According to TSN, they are: forwards Nicolas Blanchard, Zach Boychuk, Jerome Samson, Brett Sutter, Chris Terry and Tim Wallace, defensemen Brett Bellemore, Justin Krueger, Marc-Andre Gragnani and Bobby Sanguinetti; and goaltender Justin Peters.
All of those players, along with the rest of the organization’s players under two-way contracts, can be assigned to Charlotte on Saturday provided they clear waivers and are not claimed by another NHL team. At this time, such assignments would not guarantee that those players will play in the AHL. However, they are necessary for a player to become eligible.
Every player in the organization under a two-way contract, which dictates separate salaries depending on whether a player is in the NHL or AHL, is a candidate to play in Charlotte during a lockout, which could begin as early as Saturday. Of those who require waivers, the Hurricanes elected to expose all but forward Drayson Bowman.
Bowman, who split last season between Carolina and Chalotte, could potentially still play for Charlotte and avoid the waiver process by signing an AHL contract with the Checkers after the expiration of the NHL’s labor agreement. However, it is unclear as to whether or not that will take place.
The next step in the process will be the official assignment of players to Charlotte, which, in the absence of a new labor agreement, is expected to occur Saturday afternoon. |
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