Livescore
During the Chicago Blackhawks game against the New York Rangers on Sunday afternoon, news started to swirl that the Los Angeles Kings are placing forward Arthur Kaliyev on waivers.
Kaliyev is a young forward who was a second-round (33rd overall) pick in the 2019 NHL Draft. He has a high pedigree due to his skillset that helped him be a highly productive junior player.
This is a strange move for the Los Angeles Kings who are one of the best teams in the NHL right now. Injuries and inconsistencies have been an issue for Kaliyev but they may be letting him go a bit early.
He hasn’t appeared in the NHL yet this season but he is ready to get that chance at some point soon, although it is uncertain if he will at this point. In 188 NHL games played so far, Kaliyev has 35 goals and 36 assists for 71 points.
It isn’t like he’s a star or anything like that but the skills are there (with some production history to back it up) to be a contributor at the NHL level.
The Blackhawks should claim Kaliyev if there aren’t any character issues to worry about. From a pure hockey standpoint, he is someone who could take full advantage of a chance to get some minutes at the NHL level in a low-pressure situation on a team that isn’t competing to win.
This is also an experiment that wouldn’t cost the Hawks anything. If he didn’t work out for them, they could just let him go in the summer. Claiming him wouldn’t cost them a pick, a prospect, or anything other than paying his minimum salary.
When you’re the Blackhawks sitting in the position that they are, taking a chance on a young player with some pedigree is never a bad idea. You never know who takes advantage of a low-pressure change of scenery to turn their development around.
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