The Ottawa Senators waived forward Colin Greening on Tuesday, paving the way for him to be sent to the AHL Binghamton Senators, (assuming he clears) as early as noon tomorrow.
While there isn't much chance of him being picked up by another team, more surprising things have happened. Greening is a victim of his contract, and despite what some of you believe, I think he would have gotten a fairer shot if he was making Condra-like money. Sometimes expectations of a player overemphasize how dramatically his game has fallen off, and it becomes a vicious cycle and downward spiral which is where Greening now finds himself.
Thant being said, Greening could go to Binghamton and rediscover some of his game simply by getting a chance to play. I doubt he will ever be a scorer again at the level of his one really good offensive year, but he can still be a servicable 3rd or 4th liner.
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Los Angeles Kings centre Mike Richards was the talk of the league yesterday, as he was placed on waivers. The deal with Richards is declining offensive production and a large salary. While taking a chance at that number is risky, Ottawa was one of a handful of teams mentioned as a possible landing spot.
While the Sens could afford the cap hit, and the actual salary is tailing off from its peak value, Richards has never been the fleetest of foot. Although his presence in the dressing room would be a great addition, he has a lot of hard miles on his undersized frame and has been a warrior throughout his career. This brings into question how much Richards has left in the tank to give on the ice, and has been playing in a 3rd/4th line role with the defending Champion Kings.
Richards cleared waivers, but it wouldn't surprise me if the Kings were willing to eat some of the salary in a potential trade, that some team takes a chance on him to see if he can be a missing piece of the puzzle. Although it might have been tempting, and I love him as a leader and a grit element, I just don't believe he fits into what the Senators are trying to build.