Oilers Place Sheldon Souray On Re-Entry Waivers; Who Will Claim Him?

Defenseman Sheldon Souray has been placed on re-entry waivers by the Edmonton Oilers, likely in the hopes that some team will claim him. He’s been playing with the Hershey Bears of the AHL since initially clearing waivers earlier in October.

Since it’s the weekend, the waiver period lasts 48 hours, meaning teams have until Monday at 12 p.m. Eastern time to place a claim on Souray. Just like regular waivers, the team lowest in the standings gets priority.

Bob McKenzie of TSN reports that no pre-arranged claim has been made, so it’s not as if the Oilers know for sure that Souray will be claimed. It’d be shocking if a team didn’t claim him, however, since he’s available to other teams at half his $5.4 million salary cap hit.

If a team claims him, they’d be on the hook for $2.7 million while the Oilers would be on the hook for the other $2.7 million. All dollars in this case count against the cap and those terms last for the remainder of his contract, meaning the Oilers would be paying half of his salary, against their cap, until the end of next season.

So, who will be the team that places a claim? Well, we know that the New York Rangers are looking for defense, and Souray’s ability to blast a shot from the point could help their struggling, 26th ranked power play. If not the Rangers, Jim Matheson of the Edmonton Journal speculates that it could be the Dallas Stars, who could also use that shot from the point.

We’ll find out on Monday afternoon.