The Edmonton Oilers, the defending champions of the Western Conference, are placing four players on waivers as they finalize their roster for the 2024-25 season. The team announced that forwards Drake Caggiula and Raphael Lavoie, defenseman Josh Brown, and goaltender Olivier Rodrigue have been waived.
Caggiula and Brown are considered depth players with slim chances of making the roster in specific roles. Neither was expected to play significant minutes for the Oilers this season, so they will likely begin the year with the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors, assuming they clear waivers.
Demoting Brown will also help the Oilers with salary cap relief. He signed a three-year, $3 million contract at the start of free agency this summer, and his removal will eliminate his cap hit since it falls below the $1.25 million threshold.
Waiving Lavoie is a bold move by the Oilers. Drafted 38th overall in the 2019 NHL Draft, he has performed well with the Condors, scoring 53 goals and totaling 95 points in 127 games since the start of the 2022-23 AHL season. Many saw him as a potential NHL-caliber scorer for the Oilers’ bottom six. There’s a strong possibility he could be picked up by another team by tomorrow afternoon. If he remains unclaimed, he will start the season in Bakersfield and could be called up if injuries arise.
Rodrigue has improved since a rough start in the 2020-21 AHL season, finishing last year with a record of 19-12-5, a .916 save percentage, and a 2.73 goals-against average. His demotion is largely due to the Oilers’ financial situation, as they cannot afford to keep three goaltenders on the roster. Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard will be the team’s goaltending duo to start the season.
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