The Minnesota Wild placed RFA forward Jordan Schroeder on waivers Tuesday, according to multiple reports. It’s a move you don’t often see in the middle of July.
However, it’s not the first time the Wild have done a move like this. Waiving him may actually be an effort to position themselves well for their upcoming arbitration hearing. Schroeder elected to take his salary negotiations to an arbitrator, with a July 27 date set for the meeting. He’ll no doubt be looking to get a one-way contract if the two sides actually make it to arbitration.
For the Wild, like they did years ago with Stephane Veilleux, passing a player through waivers in July is a power move. If Schroeder goes unclaimed, as he likely will, they may gain some traction in negotiations to say that he should be placed on a two-way contract after passing through waivers unclaimed four times over the last year.
Last season, the 25-year-old Schroeder grabbed just 26 games in the NHL, posting two goals and two assists. That was a bit of a step down from the previous season where he had three goals and eight points in 25 games. Accompanying that slight decline was a significant decline in his possession marks. In as small a sample as he’s had, there was never hard evidence for continued success, but his 3.81% adjusted CF%Rel in the 2014-15 season looked promising. In similar ice time, he had a -0.24% mark last season.
The former 22nd overall draft pick did have a strong season in the AHL though, scoring 14 goals and 34 points in 40 games on a perennially struggling Iowa Wild team.
UPDATE:
Schroeder passed through waivers unclaimed.