TORONTO – Even though all 29 other teams passed on the opportunity to claim Brooks Laich off waivers from the Toronto Maple Leafs, the veteran forward’s hopes of getting back to the NHL this season aren’t dead.
Laich cleared waivers at noon ET on Wednesday, but could still be moved ahead of the March 1 trade deadline.
The 33-year-old is arguably more valuable as a trade piece now than before. That’s because he’s waiver exempt for the next 30 days, which would give an acquiring team the ability to move him freely between the AHL and NHL during that period.
The Leafs can also retain up to 50 per cent of Laich’s $4.5-million salary and/or take back another contract to help offset his cap hit in a trade. He’s due to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
Laich isn’t believed to be in the mix for a call-up with the Leafs down the stretch and told The Athletic over the weekend that he’d like to be moved to a situation where he might see NHL games.
He’s spent the entire season playing in the American Hockey League – dressing in Wednesday morning’s Marlies game against Syracuse – and has tried to make the best of his situation.
“When you’ve had a taste of (the NHL) and you know what it’s like, you really miss a lot of aspects,” Laich told Sportsnet earlier this season. “You miss the compete level, you miss the execution, you miss the intelligence, you miss being challenged every single day – not that that doesn’t happen down here, but it’s just at a whole different level there.”
The native of Wawota, Sask., has appeared in 764 career NHL games with Washington, Ottawa and Toronto – arriving here at the deadline last year in a trade from the Caps.
He believes he can fill a depth role on a contending team.
“You don’t get to win a Stanley Cup playing in the minors so you never give up on something that you think about every single day,” said Laich.
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