Carolina Hurricanes: Trim Roster, Place Five on Waivers

The Carolina Hurricanes have placed five players on waivers with the intention of assigning them to the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers should they clear.

The Carolina Hurricanes have made their next round of roster cuts placing forward Brian Gibbons and defensemen Kyle Wood, Alex Lintuniemi, Roland McKeown and Fredrik Claesson all on waivers at noon today. Should they clear, they will all be assigned to the Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League.

The lone forward on this list, Gibbons signed a one-year, two-way deal with the Carolina Hurricanes on July 4th. With 189 games of NHL experience, the 31 year-old was brought in to provide a veteran presence and depth option for the Canes in Charlotte. Should injuries occur in the bottom six, he’ll be one of the many candidates considered for a call up.

Acquired early August in a trade with San Jose, in exchange for Trevor Carrick who also happens to be on waivers, the 23 year-old Kyle Wood was brought in to add to organizational depth on the blueline.

Spending all of last season with the San Jose Barracudas in the AHL, Wood was second on his team in defense scoring, with 35 points in 68 games. Likely to clear, the former third round pick should be a solid leader on the backend for the Checkers this upcoming season.

Alex Lintuniemi was signed to a one-year, two-way deal on July 8th after spending last season with the LA Kings’ AHL team. The now 24 year-old Finn (Happy Birthday, Alex) was also brought in to help the Checkers’ defense. With 25 points in 67 games this past season, the former second rounder could play with Wood on Charlotte’s second defensive pairing this upcoming.

Arguably the most notable name on this list is Roland McKeown. Brought in via a trade with the Kings back in 2015, the 23 year old appears to be caught in a numbers game here in Carolina. Being one of the players competing for the final spot on the 5/6 defense pair, McKeown signed a one-year, two-way extension on September 4th.

Not looking out of place in the 10 NHL games he appeared in with the Canes back in the 2017-18 season, posting three assists, it is highly possible that we’ll see a team with a lesser defense core take a chance on Roland. However, if he clears, he will be one of the leaders in Charlotte this upcoming season and one of the first call ups should an injury occur on the backend.

Last, but not least: Fredrik Claesson. Originally attending training camp on a PTO, it didn’t take long for the 26 year old to ink a one-year, two-way deal with the Carolina Hurricanes. In a move that caught some fans off guard, given the organization wealth of depth in the position, the signing just added to the already competitive camp.

Being placed on waivers, the veteran of 150 NHL games should be a nice call up option for the Canes this season should he clear.

We won’t know until after noon tomorrow if any of these five players get claimed by another NHL team. Seeing some of the names on this list is a testament to how the organizational depth has improved dramatically to say the least.

Without a doubt, some of these players would have been permanent fixtures in Carolina Hurricanes’ lineups of old. It is rather refreshing for fans to see just how competitive the internal competition is this season.

Do you think any of these players will get claimed?