- Michael Russo of the Star Tribune: The Minnesota Wild lifted goaltender Josh Harding’s suspension this morning and put him waivers for the purpose of sending him to the AHL.Harding hasn’t played since December 31st of last year. He’s missed all of this season with a broken foot, and the last half of last year due to his multiple sclerosis. Russo doesn’t think he’ll get claimed.
I cannot imagine Harding is claimed off waivers. Not only is his health an uncertainty and not only hasn’t he played in almost 11 months, the other 29 teams don’t have the experience of how to deal with his MS.
I obviously could be wrong, but Harding’s treatment and the protocols in place behind the scenes is something the Wild has a firm grasp of but other teams don’t. In other words, this is not a normal circumstance where a team just simply picks up an injured player. There needs to be a little expertise on how to deal with him, but we’ll see.
Harding in the last year of his deal that pays him $2.1 million, with a $1.9 million cap hit.
- Luke Fox of Sportsnet: Fox notes four teams that might put in a waiver claim on Harding.
1. New Jersey Devils – the Devils don’t appear to have much faith in their backup goaltending. Cory Schneider has made 18 consecutive starts.
2. Dallas Stars – Anders Lindback has been a bust so far as the Stars backup, posting a 0-3-0 record with a 4.41 GAA and .852 SV percentage.
3. Columbus Blue Jackets – Curtis McElhinney has s 1-5-1 record in eight appearances with a 3.65 GAA and .887 SV percentage.
4. Edmonton Oilers – Harding could be a short-term experiment. Neither Ben Scrivens or Viktor Fasth have started more than 40 games in a season. Both have a losing record and save percentages under .900.