Canadian Rival Claims Former Maple Leafs forward Kasperi Kapanen, per Elliotte Friedman
The Toronto Maple Leafs missed out on adding former player Kasperi Kapanen as the forward was claimed off waivers by a Canadian rival.
On Tuesday, Elliotte Friedman reported on Twitter that the Edmonton Oilers have claimed forward Kasperi Kapanen off waivers from the St. Louis Blues.
Kapanen was placed on waivers Monday, Friedman reported.
It was surprising that St. Louis placed the former 20-goal scorer on waivers, and it was clear he wasn't going to stay long.
So far this season he only has 1 goal in 10 games and was a minus-6 for the Blues. Struggling to find playing time for an average Blues team, the writing was on the wall for Kapanen and he found himself on waivers once again.
The Toronto Maple Leafs missed out on adding another piece to their forward depth, a contingent currently dealing with a litany of injuries, and could have used Kapanen.
He would have been a cheap option and Toronto could have placed one of their several forwards on the LTIR to open up the roster and cap space for Kapanen.
Kapanen could have come back to the place he started his career, coming over to Toronto in the Phil Kessel blockbuster.
Originally drafted by the Penguins in 2014 (22nd overall) Kapanen emerged as a bright spot for the Maple Leafs during some very tough times. He exploded for 20 goals in 2018-19 and looked like a huge piece of Toronto going forward.
He was traded back to Pittsburgh in 2020 and didn't find the same goal-scoring prowess he had in Toronto. He struggled until being claimed off waivers by the St. Louis Blues.
Not really improving in St. Louis, Kapanen only scored 37 points in 106 games and was a shell of the former highly-touted prospect. Edmonton hopes they can reclaim some of his former glory, and perhaps Connor McDavid is the key.
Kapanen will likely slot in as a depth forward and could find time if Mattias Janmark or Jeff Skinner struggle, and will offer another potential weapon for Connor McDavid to utilize.
It's a shame Toronto missed out on adding Kapanen back into the fold, as they try to navigate their path to the Stanley Cup amidst a bevy of ailing players.
