Waivers
Elliotte Friedman: The Seattle Kraken have claimed forward Austin Czarnik on waivers.
Samantha Pell: The Washington Capitals have placed defenseman Dennis Cholowski on waivers.
Canadiens to have fans in the stands soon
Arpon Basu: (thread) Starting on February 21st the Montreal Canadiens will be able to have 50 percent capacity.
From now until the 21st they have five more home games.
On March 14th they will be able to go 100 percent capacity.
From Feb. 21st to Mar. 14th they have two home games.
March 15th they start a six-game homestand.
There will be a mask mandate and vaccine passports in place until at least the 14th
The Blues extend two
Jeremy Rutherford: The St. Louis Blues have signed defenseman Robert Bortuzzo to a two-year contract with an AAV of $950,000.
Jeremy Rutherford: “I like the deal for Bortuzzo. He’s a glue guy on the ice, and he’s a huge part of the chemistry behind the scenes. The Blues have a lot of defensemen but he brings an element they don’t otherwise have.”
Lou Korac: Bortuzzo: “It feels good. I’m excited, I’m glad they’re putting a little more faith in me. It’s no secret I love being here, I love being around this team & this organization. I’m excited it all came together pretty quick. It seemed like both sides wanted to get it done.”
Robert Bortuzzo, signed to a 2x$0.95M extension by STL, is a capable depth defenceman. #STLBlues pic.twitter.com/c4xomC76JO
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 8, 2022
Andy Strickland: The Blues have signed forward Logan Brown to a one-year contract extension worth $750,000.
The Lightning extend Maroon
Bryan Burns: The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed forward Pat Maroon to a two-year contract extension with an AAV of $1 million.
Cap Friendly: “Assuming that the cap stays flat at $81.5M, and based on the clubs current active roster, after signing Maroon to an extension the #Lightning now have a Projected Cap Hit of $82,841,666 for 2022-23 with a roster of 18 players (11F – 6D – 1G) and 1 LTIR eligible player (Seabrook).”
Pat Maroon, signed to a 2x$1M extension by TB, has remained a useful bottom-six player into his mid-thirties. #GoBolts pic.twitter.com/LfDwOyf8Gt
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 8, 2022
In COVID protocol
Ben Kuzma: Vancouver Canucks forward Matthew Highmore has been placed in COVID protocol.
Out of COVID protocol
Washington Capitals: Forward Alex Ovechkin is out of COVID protocol.
