2003 NHL Waiver Draft

The 2003 NHL Waiver Draft was held October 3. This was the busiest waiver draft in recent memory, with 18 selections and 20 players changing hands. This would also prove to be the last waiver draft. In September, 2004 the NHL locked out its players (again) while a new collective bargaining agreement was negotiated with the NHLPA. The waiver draft was a casualty of those negotiations.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Nolan Baumgartner	Pittsburgh Penguins	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Travis Green	Columbus Blue Jackets	Toronto Maple Leafs	Petr Tenkrat	claim
Wade Brookbank	Nashville Predators	Ottawa Senators	???	cash
Serge Aubin	Atlanta Thrashers	Colorado Avalanche	???	cash
Darren Langdon	Montreal Canadiens	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Sheldon Keefe	New York Rangers	Tampa Bay Lightning	???	cash
Round 2
Chris Mason	Nashville Predators	Florida Panthers	???	cash
Ronald Petrovicky	Atlanta Thrashers	New York Rangers	???	cash
Steve Begin	Montreal Canadiens	Buffalo Sabres	???	cash
Brian Willsie	Washington Capitals	Colorado Avalanche	???	cash
Todd Simpson	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Phoenix Coyotes	???	cash
Jeff Heerema	St. Louis Blues	New York Rangers	???	cash
Round 3
Steve Valiquette	Florida Panthers	Edmonton Oilers	Jani Hurme	cash
Shawn Heins	Atlanta Thrashers	New York Rangers	???	cash
Joel Bouchard	New York Rangers	Buffalo Sabres	???	cash
Denis Hamel	Washington Capitals	Ottawa Senators	Glen Metropolit	claim
Round 4
Jani Hurme	Carolina Hurricanes	Florida Panthers	???	cash
Mike Siklenka	New York Rangers	Philadelphia Flyers	???	cash

Jani Hurme was a point of contention in this draft. When the Panthers took goalie Steve Valiquette from the Oilers in the third round they had to drop a goalie from their protected list, and they dropped Hurme. The Oilers could have claimed Hurme as compensation for losing Valiquette but chose the cash payment instead. The Sabres, Sharks and Predators passed on their picks and on the Thrashers turn GM Don Waddell called out Hurme's name. This broke two rules. First of all the Panthers had already lost a goalie—they lost Chris Mason to the Predators in the second round—and the maximum number of goalies a team could lose in the draft was only one.

The Panthers could consent to losing another goalie, and they did so with Hurme, however there was the second rule being broken in this case. It was a rather arcane interpretation of the rule about claiming a player dropped by another club. The rule, as written in the NHL By-laws, reads:

20.9 The club from which the draft claim was made shall have the option, exercisable immediately, of accepting the cash payment as outlined in subsection 20.11 below, or requesting that the player or goalkeeper removed by the claiming club be transferred immediately to its Reserve List and, if it so desires, to its Protected List. If the Club elects to add such player or goalkeeper to its Protected List, it must simultaneously drop a player from said list. If the player or goalkeeper is merely transferred to the Club's Reserve List, but not placed on its Protected List, he shall remain available for regular draft claim until so claimed by any Member Club, including the Club exercising this right to transfer, in proper sequence, except that he shall not be available to be claimed by any playoff club until all non-playoff clubs have had an opportunity to claim him. The foregoing option shall not be affected by the number of draft claims which have been made against the claiming club.

The league interpreted this rule to mean that Hurme had to be offered to all other non-playoff clubs first. If Hurme went unclaimed until the Thrashers turn in the following round then they were free to claim him. Unfortunately for the Thrashers the last-place Hurricanes beat them to the punch, taking Hurme with the first pick in the fourth round.

After the draft was concluded the Hurricanes traded Hurme to the Thrashers for a fourth round pick in 2004 (Brett Carson).

←2002 Waiver Draft

NHL Draft Results

2002 NHL Waiver Draft

The 2002 NHL Waiver Draft was held October 4. This was the shortest waiver draft since 1980, lasting only one round.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Stephane Robidas	Atlanta Thrashers	Montreal Canadiens	???	cash
Mathieu Biron	Columbus Blue Jackets	Tampa Bay Lightning	???	cash
Petr Tenkrat	Florida Panthers	Nashville Predators	???	cash
Francis Bouillon	Nashville Predators	Montreal Canadiens	???	cash
Ronald Petrovicky	New York Rangers	Calgary Flames	???	cash
Rick Berry	Washington Capitals	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	cash

←2001 Waiver Draft

2003 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

2001 NHL Waiver Draft

The 2001 NHL Waiver Draft was held September 28. The rules were as they had been in 1997: 18 skaters protected, two goalies protected, maximum of three players lost (including one goalie), etc.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Chris Osgood	New York Islanders	Detroit Red Wings	???	cash
Sebastian Bordeleau	Minnesota Wild	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
Kirk Muller	Columbus Blue Jackets	Dallas Stars	???	cash
Jamie Allison	Calgary Flames	Chicago Blackhawks	Phil Housley	claim
P.J. Stock	Boston Bruins	New York Rangers	???	cash
Round 2
Glen Metropolit	Tampa Bay Lightning	Washington Capitals	???	cash
Josh Holden	Carolina Hurricanes	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Martin Brochu	Vancouver Canucks	Minnesota Wild	???	cash

Chris Osgood was left exposed by the Detroit Red Wings because they had acquired Dominik Hasek from the Sabres in the off-season. Some suspected that his salary might scare off any takers but with the first selection the Islanders picked Osgood. Osgood helped the Islanders make the playoffs in 2002, the first time since 1994.

Kirk Muller was Blue Jackets property for mere minutes. Immediately after the draft he was traded back to the Stars for the rights to Evgeny Petrochinin, a Russian defenceman drafted by the Stars in 1994. Muller played two more seasons for the Stars and Petrochinin never left Russia.

←2000 Waiver Draft

2002 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

2000 NHL Waiver Draft

The 2000 NHL Waiver Draft was held September 29. The expansion Minnesota Wild and Columbus Blue Jackets were given the first two choices in the draft order and participated with the non-playoff teams in the first round. This year the teams would lose a maximum of only player each, as had been the case in 1992.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Zdeno Ciger	Minnesota Wild	Nashville Predators	???	cash
Jason Podollan	Tampa Bay Lightning	Los Angeles Kings	???	cash
Andreas Johansson	New York Rangers	Calgary Flames	???	cash
Round 2
Sylvain Blouin	Minnesota Wild	Montreal Canadiens	Jeff Odgers	cash
Jeff Odgers	Atlanta Thrashers	Minnesota Wild	???	cash

This was the second time in three waiver drafts that Zdeno Ciger was chosen with the first pick. He never played a game for the Predators nor the Wild. In 2001 he signed as a free agent with the Lightning.

←1999 Waiver Draft

2001 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1999 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1999 NHL Waiver Draft was held September 27. The expansion Atlanta Thrashers were given the first choice in the draft order and participated with the non-playoff teams in the first round.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Ladislav Kohn	Atlanta Thrashers	Toronto Maple Leafs	???	cash
Viacheslav Butsayev	Tampa Bay Lightning	Ottawa Senators	???	cash
Chris Joseph	Vancouver Canucks	Ottawa Senators	???	cash
Jamie Rivers	New York Islanders	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
Ken Sutton	Washington Capitals	New Jersey Devils	???	cash
Rich Brennan	Los Angeles Kings	Nashville Predators	???	cash
Round 2
Jeff Williams	Atlanta Thrashers	New Jersey Devils	???	cash
Evgeny Namestnikov	Vancouver Canucks	New York Rangers	???	cash
Terry Yake	St. Louis Blues	Atlanta Thrashers	???	cash
Round 3
Ladislav Benysek	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Edmonton Oilers	???	cash

This was the third time in six waiver drafts that Chris Joseph had been chosen. In that time he had been claimed by the Penguins from the Lightning, claimed from the Penguins by the Canucks, signed as a free agent with the Flyers, and signed as a free agent with the Senators. He ended up never playing a regular season game for the Senators because in the '99 Waiver Draft he was claimed by the Canucks (again). He wouldn't even last the season in Vancouver, having been put on waivers in March of 2000 and claimed by the Coyotes. He was with the Coyotes for less than a year before he was put on waivers again and claimed by the Thrashers in February, 2001. He finished his playing career in Europe.

←1998 Waiver Draft

2000 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1998 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1998 NHL Waiver Draft was held October 5. The expansion Nashville Predators were given the first choice in the draft order and participated with the non-playoff teams in the first round.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Zdeno Ciger	Nashville Predators	Edmonton Oilers	???	cash
Brent Gilchrist	Tampa Bay Lightning	Detroit Red Wings	???	cash
Pascal Trepanier	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Colorado Avalanche	???	cash
Dennis Bonvie	Chicago Blackhawks	Edmonton Oilers	???	cash
Kevin Dahl	Toronto Maple Leafs	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
Round 2
Frédéric Chabot	Montreal Canadiens	Los Angeles Kings	???	cash
Maxim Galanov	Pittsburgh Penguins	New York Rangers	???	cash
Round 3
Rory Fitzpatrick	Boston Bruins	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
Kip Miller	Pittsburgh Penguins	New York Islanders	???	cash

Boston's third round pick, Rory Fitzpatrick, was a weird one. I don't know why it even happened. After the draft Boston put Fitzpatrick on waivers and he was claimed by his former team, the St. Louis Blues. Rory Fitzpatrick was a Bruin for all of two days in the autumn of 1998.

This isn't relevant to the '98 Waiver Draft but my favourite story about Rory surrounded the 2007 All-Star Game. By 2006 the NHL had created an online voting system so that the fans could choose the twelve starting players. In the 2006-07 season they allowed the fans to vote as many times as they wanted. Some fans felt that that sort of system was ridiculous and would only lead to stuffing the proverbial ballot boxes so they hatched a plan to protest the system. They would campaign to vote in a relatively unknown, unheralded player. A player who arguably wouldn't deserve to be on the team.

They picked Rory Fitzpatrick.

Ultimately Fitzpatrick ended up third in Western Conference voting for defencemen therefore he wasn't named to the Western Conference All-Star team. Slate magazine suspected that the NHL itself tampered with the voting system in the last week of the campaign to ensure that Fitzpatrick didn't get enough votes. I suspect we'll never really know.

←1997 Waiver Draft

1999 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1997 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1997 NHL Waiver Draft was held September 28.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Tim Taylor	Boston Bruins	Detroit Red Wings	???	cash
Tom Chorske	New York Islanders	Ottawa Senators	???	cash
Mike Peluso	Calgary Flames	New York Rangers	???	cash
Round 2
Robert Lang	Boston Bruins	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	cash
Mick Vukota	Tampa Bay Lightning	New York Islanders	???	cash
Pascal Rhéaume	St. Louis Blues	New Jersey Devils	???	cash
Jimmy Waite	Phoenix Coyotes	Chicago Blackhawks	???	cash
Brent Severyn	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Colorado Avalanche	???	cash
Scott Daniels	New Jersey Devils	Philadelphia Flyers	???	cash

←1996 Waiver Draft

1998 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1996 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1996 NHL Waiver Draft was held September 30. Protected lists were filed on September 27.

The following players were unprotected:

Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
Joe Day (C), Alain Deeks (D), Oleg Mikulchik (D), Mike O'Neill (G)

Boston Bruins
Tim Cheveldae (G), John Gruden (D), Dmitri Kvartalnov (LW), Jean-Yves Roy (RW), Tim Sweeney (LW)

Buffalo Sabres
Terry Hollinger (D), Doug Houda (D), Charlie Huddy (D), Terry Yake (RW)

Calgary Flames
Rick Tabaracci (G)

Chicago Blackhawks
Bill Armstrong (C), Dave Chyzowski (LW), Rob Conn (RW), Ivan Droppa (D), Steve Dubinsky (C), Fred Knipscheer (LW), Kip Miller (C), Andre Racicot (G), Jeff Ricciardi (D), Jeff Serowik (D), Chris Snell (D), Travis Thiessen (D), Jimmy Waite (G), Brad Werenka (D)

Colorado Avalanche
Mike Hartman (LW), Yves Sarault (LW), Steve Tuttle (RW), Steffon Walby (RW)

Dallas Stars
Neil Brady (C), Guy Carbonneau (C), Pat Elynuik (RW), Brent Fedyk (LW), Dan Keczmer (D), Mark Lawrence (RW), Jim Storm (LW)

Detroit Red Wings
Jeff Bloemberg (D), Mark Major (LW)

Edmonton Oilers
Adam Bennett (D), Greg de Vries (D), Ralph Intranuovo (C), Terran Sandwith (D)

Florida Panthers
Craig Billington (G), Mike Casselman (C), Gilbert Dionne (LW), Craig Ferguson (C), Bob Halkidis (D), Dan Ratushny (D), Geoff Smith (D)

Hartford Whalers
Brian Glynn (D), Dan Kesa (RW)

Los Angeles Kings
Mark Astley (D), J.C. Bergeron (G), Brent Grieve (LW), Ken McRae (C), Patrice Tardif (C)

Montreal Canadiens
Patrick Labrecque (G)

New Jersey Devils
Bobby House (RW), Geordie Kinnear (D), Krzysztof Oliwa (LW), Pascal Rhéaume (C), Peter Sidorkiewicz (G)

New York Islanders
Derek Armstrong (C), Denis Chevyakov (D), Brent Hughes (LW), Dave McLlwain (C), Alexander Semak (C)

New York Rangers
Micah Aivazoff (C), Peter Fiorentino (D), Ken Gernander (C)

Ottawa Senators
Mike Bales (G)

Philadelphia Flyers
Frank Bialowas (D), Jason Bowen (D), Aris Brimanis (D), Bruce Coles (LW), Bob Corkum (C), Craig Darby (C), Rob DiMaio (RW), Yanick Dupre (LW), Tony Horacek (LW), Patrik Juhlin (RW), Steven King (RW), Trent Klatt (RW), Les Kuntar (G), Shawn McCosh (C), Clayton Norris (RW), Dominic Roussel (G), Darren Rumble (RW), John Stevens (D), Peter White (C)

Phoenix Coyotes
Kevin Dahl (D), Dallas Eakins (D), Rob Murray (C), Reggie Savage (C), Jason Simon (LW), Brent Thompson (D), Mark Visheau (D)

Pittsburgh Penguins
Jeff Christian (LW), Corey Foster (D), Chris Joseph (D), Brad Lauer (RW), Ed Patterson (RW)

St Louis Blues
Paul Broten (RW), Adam Creighton (C), Mike Hudson (C), Yuri Khmylev (LW), Jamie McLennan (G), Basil McRae (LW), Rob Pearson (RW), Scott Pellerin (RW), Ken Sutton (D), Terry Virtue (D), David Williams (D)

San Jose Sharks
Wade Flaherty (G), Iain Fraser (C), Chris Lipuma (D), Yves Racine (D)

Tampa Bay Lightning
Paul Ysebaert (LW)

Toronto Maple Leafs
Wayne Presley (RW), Greg Smyth (D), Rob Zettler (D)

Vancouver Canucks
Jim Dowd (C), Mike Fountain (G), Brian Loney (RW), Dean Malkoc (D), Matt Ruchty (LW)

Washington Capitals
Daniel Laperriere (D), Stewart Malgunas (D), Jeff Nelson (C), Michel Picard (LW), Steve Poapst (D), Robb Stauber (G)

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Rob DiMaio	San Jose Sharks	Philadelphia Flyers	???	cash
Jim Dowd	New York Islanders	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Round 2
Corey Foster	New York Islanders	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	cash
Bob Corkum	Phoenix Coyotes	Philadelphia Flyers	???	cash
Alexander Semak	Vancouver Canucks	New York Islanders	???	cash
Dean Malkoc	Boston Bruins	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Craig Billington	Colorado Avalanche	Florida Panthers	???	cash
Round 3
Chris Joseph	Vancouver Canucks	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	cash
Ralph Intranuovo	Toronto Maple Leafs	Edmonton Oilers	???	cash

←1995-96 Waiver Draft

1997 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1995-96 NHL Waiver Draft

I have named this blog post the "1995-96" Waiver Draft in order to disambiguate between this one, the one that occurred before the 1995-96 season, and the one preceding it that occurred before the abbreviated 1994-95 season. Both were held in 1995; this one on October 2.

(Rules were the same as before.)

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Jim McKenzie	Winnipeg Jets	New York Islanders	???	cash
Round 2
Ted Drury	Ottawa Senators	Hartford Whalers	???	cash
Bill Huard	Dallas Stars	Colorado Avalanche	???	cash
Brent Hughes	Buffalo Sabres	Boston Bruins	???	cash
Pat Jablonski	St. Louis Blues	Toronto Maple Leafs	???	cash
Round 3
Justin Hocking	Ottawa Senators	Los Angeles Kings	???	cash
Rob Conn	Buffalo Sabres	New Jersey Devils	Bob Sweeney	cash
Round 4
Bob Sweeney	New York Islanders	Buffalo Sabres	???	cash

←1994-95 Waiver Draft

1996 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1994-95 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1994 Waiver Draft was supposed to be held in late September or early October. That didn't happen because the NHL owners locked out the players on October 1, 1994 while they bargained with the NHLPA and came to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement. I won't go into the details of the lockout here but suffice it to say it was by far the longest labour disruption in NHL history up to that point and it didn't end until January 11, 1995.

Some events that would have normally occurred in the 1994-95 season were cancelled, such as the All-Star Game that had been scheduled for January 21, 1995 in San Jose (the 1997 All-Star Game was held in San Jose instead). The waiver draft was merely postponed until the start of the playing season; it was held on January 18, 1995. Three-and-a-half months late, but better late than never?

(Rules were the same as before.)

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Rob Gaudreau	Ottawa Senators	San Jose Sharks	???	cash
Brian Glynn	Hartford Whalers	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Dean Kennedy	Edmonton Oilers	Winnipeg Jets	???	cash
Round 2
Kelly Chase	Hartford Whalers	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
Len Esau	Edmonton Oilers	Calgary Flames	???	cash
Donald Dufresne	St. Louis Blues	Los Angeles Kings	???	cash
Randy Wood	Toronto Maple Leafs	Buffalo Sabres	???	cash
Chris Joseph	Pittsburgh Penguins	Tampa Bay Lightning	???	cash
Round 3
Igor Korolev	Winnipeg Jets	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
François Leroux	Pittsburgh Penguins	Ottawa Senators	???	cash
Round 4
Sheldon Kennedy	Calgary Flames	Winnipeg Jets	???	cash
Wayne McBean	Pittsburgh Penguins	Winnipeg Jets	???	cash
Round 5
Roger Johansson	Chicago Blackhawks	Calgary Flames	???	cash
Doug Brown	Detroit Red Wings	Pittsburgh Penguins	Micah Aivazoff	claim
Round 6
Micah Aivazoff	Edmonton Oilers	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	cash
Greg Gilbert	St. Louis Blues	New York Rangers	???	cash
Mike Hudson	Pittsburgh Penguins	New York Rangers	???	cash

←1993 Waiver Draft

1995-96 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1993 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1993 Waiver Draft was held on October 3. The rules were the same as they were in 1992, except that the number of players that could be lost was back up to the regular three (whereas in 1992 each team could only lose a maximum of one player). The new expansion teams, the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the Florida Panthers, were allowed to participate in the first round of selections with the non-playoff clubs.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Dave McLlwain	Ottawa Senators	Toronto Maple Leafs	???	$18,700
Mike Hudson	New York Rangers	Edmonton Oilers	Paul Broten	cash
Paul Broten	Dallas Stars	New York Rangers	???	cash
Round 2
John McIntyre	Vancouver Canucks	New York Rangers	Garry Valk	cash
Rich Sutter	Chicago Blackhawks	St. Louis Blues	???	cash
Round 3
Garry Valk	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash

Garry Valk is sometimes erroneously attributed as one of the Ducks' choices in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft. In fact he was chosen in this draft, the '93 Waiver Draft, after the Canucks dropped him from their protected list when they picked John McIntyre in the second round. Valk was one of the Ducks' top wingers in their first season.

←1992 Waiver Draft

1994-95 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1992 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1992 Waiver Draft was held on October 4. The rules were the same as they were in 1990, except that only one player could be lost by any given team (because this was an expansion year). The new expansion teams, the Tampa Bay Lightning and Ottawa Senators, were allowed to participate in the first round of selections with the non-playoff clubs.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Adam Creighton	Tampa Bay Lightning	New York Islanders	???	cash
Norm Maciver	Ottawa Senators	Edmonton Oilers	???	cash
Yvon Corriveau	San Jose Sharks	Washington Capitals	???	cash
Chris Dahlquist	Calgary Flames	Minnesota North Stars	???	cash
Shawn Cronin	Philadelphia Flyers	Quebec Nordiques	???	cash
Round 2
Igor Larionov	San Jose Sharks	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Doug Evans	Philadelphia Flyers	Quebec Nordiques	???	cash
Dave Christian	Chicago Blackhawks	St. Louis Blues	???	cash

Adam Creighton was selected first by the Lightning in a pre-arranged deal with the Islanders. In exchange for the Islanders leaving Creighton unprotected the Lightning traded their fifth round pick in the 1994 Entry Draft to the Islanders (which the Isles used to select goalie Mark McArthur, who never appeared in an NHL game).

Norm Maciver would go on to be the first-year Senators' highest-scoring player.

Igor Larionov was the most high-profile pick this year, although at the time the reaction from the press was muted. Larionov had come over from the Soviet Union in 1989 (with permission mind you; he didn't defect) and played for the Canucks with Vladimir Krutov, one of his former linemates from CSKA Moscow. Krutov only played one year for the Canucks before being cut from the team. Apocryphal tales of Krutov being cut because he was overweight and out-of-shape aren't entirely untrue, but the underlying reason is that Krutov's contract was not registered properly with the league.

Soviet players like Krutov, Larionov, Sergei Makarov, Slava Fetisov, Alexei Kasatonov and Sergei Priakhin were given permission to leave the USSR and play hockey in the NHL by Sovintersport, a Soviet government agency that managed Soviet sports internationally. The contracts for the players were with Sovintersport, who would receive a percentage of the players' salaries as "transfer payments" from the NHL clubs, and they also insisted that the typical clauses in the Standard Player's Contract regarding assignment to a minor league team be rescinded. The Soviets did not want their best hockey players to play in the North American minor leagues; it would have been seen as tarnishing the image of Soviet sport. Striking out these clauses made the contracts ineligible for registration with the league because they were seen to be in violation of the league's by-laws and constitution, as well as the collective bargaining agreement with the NHLPA. While Larionov, Makarov and others signed revised contracts Krutov refused. It is for this reason that—legally speaking—he was only allowed to play a year with the Canucks.

Larionov continued playing for the Canucks for the rest of his three-year contract (which paid him and Sovintersport $375,000 per year, the same as Krutov's contract). When his contract expired and he sought to sign another he still had to do so through the Russian sports agency, who would continue to draw a portion of his salary from him. Rather than allow this to go on he signed a smaller contract with Lugano Hockey Club of the Swiss league, thumbing his nose at the Russian government.

The Sharks, who finished last in the 1991-92 season (their first) were hoping to sign Larionov and Sergei Makarov to contracts in order to dramatically improve the team. Makarov's contract with the Flames also expired in 1992 and the Sharks made him an offer in July. Makarov was considered a Group III free agent, which meant at the time that the Flames were not entitled to any compensation should Makarov sign a contract with another team but they still had the right to match any other team's offer. The Flames elected to match the Sharks' offer and Makarov would remain a Flame for the foreseeable future. Despite this setback the Sharks continued to pursue Larionov and picked him from the Canucks in the waiver draft.

It took almost a year but after the 1992-93 season the Russian government relented and allowed Larionov to sign an NHL contract without any interference. Larionov signed on the dotted line on June 5, 1993.

Makarov had had enough of playing in Calgary and had a particularly acrimonious relationship with Flames coach Dave King. (Makarov never got along with any of the Flames coaches. In his first year in Calgary he told Terry Crisp: "[Viktor] Tikhonov? Bad guy, good coach. You? Good guy, bad coach.") At the end of the season, just days before the 1993 Expansion Draft, Makarov was traded to the Hartford Whalers. The Whalers intended on drafting Viktor Kozlov in the 1993 Entry Draft and hoped that Makarov would mentor him and Andrei Nikolishin, their first-round pick in 1992 who was still playing in Russia for Dynamo Moscow. Makarov was not keen on the idea: he wanted to play for the Sharks and with Larionov. The Sharks in turn made a deal with the Whalers: the Whalers would get the Sharks' #2 overall pick in exchange for the Whalers' #6 overall pick, their second and third round picks, and Sergei Makarov. With the #2 pick the Whalers selected Chris Pronger. With the #6 pick the Sharks selected Kozlov.

Larionov and Makarov were teammates again for the first time since they had left the Soviet Union in 1989. They would lead the Sharks to the single greatest turnaround season in NHL history (a gain of 58 points over their record in 1992-93) and their first playoff birth, where they famously upset the heavily favoured Detroit Red Wings in the first round.

←1990 Waiver Draft

1993 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1990 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1990 Waiver Draft was held on October 1. The rules were the same as they were before except for the new provision that any player traded in the four weeks before the draft could not be reacquired by the club that traded him in the following season. This new rule was added to prevent teams from 'stashing' players on another team as the Flyers and Jets had done with Pete Peeters and Keith Acton in 1989.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Wayne Van Dorp	Quebec Nordiques	Chicago Blackhawks	???	$50,000
Randy Gregg	Vancouver Canucks	Edmonton Oilers	???	$15,000
Bengt-Åke Gustafsson	Detroit Red Wings	Washington Capitals	???	cash
Round 2
Shawn Anderson	Quebec Nordiques	Washington Capitals	???	cash
Mario Marois	St. Louis Blues	Quebec Nordiques	Harold Snepsts	cash
Round 3
Aaron Broten	Quebec Nordiques	Minnesota North Stars	???	$10,000
Rod Buskas	Los Angeles Kings	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	$10,000
Bob Bassen	St. Louis Blues	Chicago Blackhawks	Mario Marois	cash

The Canucks' choice of (Dr.) Randy Gregg in the first round was a... curious one. Gregg had declared that he would retire from the game of hockey after winning his fifth and final Stanley Cup with the Oilers. He hadn't filed his retirement papers with the league but made it known that any team that chose him in the waiver draft would be wasting a pick. His home town was Edmonton, he was completing his residency in Edmonton; he didn't want to live anywhere or do anything else than to practice medicine in Edmonton. This was the third time he had declared his retirement, and he intended it to be his last. The Canucks picked him anyway, just as they had picked Behn Wilson in the 1988 Waiver Draft. It took over a year of negotiating and very generous remuneration to convince Dr. Gregg to lace up the skates one last time. He played 21 regular season and seven playoff games with the Canucks in 1991-92, after which he retired for the fourth and final time from the game of hockey.

The Red Wings' choice of Bengt Gustafsson was another bizarre one. Gustafsson left the Capitals in 1989 and returned to his native Sweden. He wanted to raise his kids in Sweden. He had absolutely no desire to return to North America and play in the NHL but the Red Wings picked him anyway. They lost him to the Sharks in the 1991 Expansion Draft, and just as he promised Gustafsson never played professional hockey in North America again.

←1989 Waiver Draft

1992 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1989 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1989 Waiver Draft was held on October 2. The rules were broadly speaking the same as they were in 1988 (e.g. protected lists of 18 players and two goaltenders) except for the number of rounds at the beginning of the draft where only the clubs that failed to make the playoffs in the preceding season were allowed to participate. In 1986 and 1987 it was unlimited—playoff clubs would begin selecting only after all of the non-playoff clubs passed on their choices in a round—and in 1988 this was amended to a hard cap of two rounds. In 1989 the limit was reduced to one and only one round. It would remain this way until the waiver draft was abolished after the 2004-05 lockout.

This was on the face of it a much more subdued affair than the drafts in 1987 and 1988. Only eight players were chosen, and none were claimed as compensation after being dropped from their club's protected list. The fallout from trades before and after the draft were the biggest newsmakers. I will explain after the draft results.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Greg C. Adams	Quebec Nordiques	Vancouver Canucks	???	cash
Dave Hannan	Toronto Maple Leafs	Pittsburgh Penguins	???	cash
Moe Mantha	Winnipeg Jets	Philadelphia Flyers	???	$5,000
Kent Nilsson	New Jersey Devils	Edmonton Oilers	???	cash
Round 2
Dave Mackey	Minnesota North Stars	Chicago Blackhawks	???	cash
Craig Coxe	Vancouver Canucks	Chicago Blackhawks	???	cash
Mikael Andersson	Hartford Whalers	Buffalo Sabres	???	cash
Nick Kypreos	Washington Capitals	Philadelphia Flyers	???	$20,000

So, what was all the hub-bub about trades? There were two of them that had an impact on the results of the draft. On September 28, mere days before the draft, the Flyers traded goalie Pete Peeters and forward Keith Acton to the Jets for future considerations. The Jets had a young team and could protect Peeters and Acton without sacrificing any of their other players. On October 3, the day after the draft, the Jets traded Peeters and Acton back to the Flyers for a draft pick and other considerations. (Specifically, the Jets received the Maple Leafs' fifth round pick in the 1991 Entry Draft (which the Flyers had acquired on Sept. 9 in a trade for Mark Laforest—the Jets used the pick on Finnish defenceman Juha Ylonen) and the future considerations in another previous trade involving Shawn Cronin were cancelled.) The others teams immediately cried foul; it was obvious that the Flyers 'stashed' Peeters and Acton with the Jets in order to prevent them from being eligible for selection.

The NHL investigated the matter and on December 2, after two months of internal deliberations, President John Ziegler fined both the Flyers and Jets $10,000 each for using the guise of trades to loan players and keep them from being taken in the waiver draft. The trades were not rescinded: the Flyers kept Peeters and Acton and the Jets kept the draft pick they were given.

In 1990 the waiver draft rules were amended such that any players traded by a club in the four weeks preceding the waiver draft were not allowed to be reacquired by that club in the season that followed.

←1988 Waiver Draft

1990 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1988 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1988 Waiver Draft was held on October 3. The rules were almost the same as they were in 1987. In 1986 and 1987 the non-playoff clubs were allowed to make choices for an unlimited number of rounds to start off the draft, and only after all of the non-playoff clubs passed on their choices in a round were the playoff clubs allowed to begin making selections. In 1988 the number of rounds where the non-playoff clubs had this exclusivity was set to a hard limit of two. In the third and all subsequent rounds the selection order would include the playoff clubs as well. As before in the rounds where only the non-playoff teams made picks they were not allowed to choose players from other teams in their own respective divisions.

The number of players on the protected lists increased again, back up to the 18 skaters and two goalies it had been in 1980 and 1981.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Stewart Gavin	Minnesota North Stars	Hartford Whalers	none	$7,500
Behn Wilson	Vancouver Canucks	Chicago Blackhawks	none	$2,500
Steve Dykstra	Pittsburgh Penguins	Edmonton Oilers	none	$12,500
Craig Redmond	New York Rangers	Edmonton Oilers	none	$20,000
Round 2
Tom Martin	Minnesota North Stars	Hartford Whalers	none	$30,000
Risto Siltanen	Vancouver Canucks	New Jersey Devils	none	$12,000
Jay Caufield	Pittsburgh Penguins	Minnesota North Stars	Dan Frawley	$40,000
Round 3
Andy Brickley	Boston Bruins	New Jersey Devils	Bill O'Dwyer	$12,500
Ken Hammond	Edmonton Oilers	Los Angeles Kings	Dave Hannan	$10,000
Round 4
Ken Leiter	Minnesota North Stars	New York Islanders	Curt Giles	$15,000
Dave Hannan	Pittsburgh Penguins	Edmonton Oilers	Dave Hunter	claim
Round 5
Jim Holford	Los Angeles Kings	Buffalo Sabres	Paul Guay	$30,000
Steve Smith	Buffalo Sabres	Calgary Flames	Doug Smith	$10,000
Doug Sulliman	Philadelphia Flyers	New Jersey Devils	Brad Marsh	$5,000
Doug Smith	Edmonton Oilers	Buffalo Sabres	Mark Lamb	$10,000
Round 6
Brad Marsh	Toronto Maple Leafs	Philadelphia Flyers	Dale DeGray	$2,500
Dale DeGray	Los Angeles Kings	Toronto Maple Leafs	Tim Watters	$12,500

Note that the Steve Smith taken by the Sabres from the Flames in the fifth round is not the same Steve Smith who played for the Oilers in the 1980s and infamously scored an own-goal in game seven of the 1986 Smythe Division Finals. That Steve Smith, full name James Stephen Smith, was born April 30, 1963 in Glasgow, Scotland. The Steve Smith taken in the 1988 Waiver Draft was born April 4, 1963 in Trenton, Ontario. He was drafted in 1981 by the Flyers and had just signed as a free agent with the Flames in the summer of 1988. He never played a game for the Flames. The other Steve Smith, the one who played for the Oilers in the '80s and scored that infamous goal against his own team in '86, did play for the Flames eventually. He retired in 1997 and spent a year with the Flames as an assistant coach, after which he made a comeback and played three more seasons with the Flames.

←1987 Waiver Draft

1989 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1987 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1987 Waiver Draft was held on October 5. The rules were the same as they were in 1986, except that non-playoff clubs were only allowed to choose to not drop a player from their protected lists when they made a selection in the first rounds of exclusive selections amongst themselves. In '86 they were afforded this luxury in any round.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Kevin Maguire	Buffalo Sabres	Toronto Maple Leafs	none	$40,000
Reijo Ruotsalainen	New Jersey Devils	Edmonton Oilers	none	cash
Randy Boyd	Vancouver Canucks	New York Islanders	none	cash
Al Tuer	Minnesota North Stars	Edmonton Oilers	none	cash
Charlie Simmer	Pittsburgh Penguins	Boston Bruins	none	$2,500
Round 2
Risto Siltanen	New Jersey Devils	Quebec Nordiques	none	cash
Round 3
all non-playoff clubs passed
Round 4
Tim Tookey	Los Angeles Kings	Philadelphia Flyers	Dave Williams	cash
Glen Cochrane	Chicago Blackhawks	Vancouver Canucks	Jack O'Callahan	cash
Bill Root	St. Louis Blues	Hartford Whalers	Doug Wickenheiser	claim
Willi Plett	Boston Bruins	New York Rangers	Dave Reid	cash
Round 5
Ed Hospodar	Buffalo Sabres	Philadelphia Flyers	Dave Fenyves	claim
Jack O'Callahan	New Jersey Devils	Chicago Blackhawks	Risto Siltanen	cash
Doug Wickenheiser	Vancouver Canucks	Hartford Whalers	Brent Peterson	claim
Stu Kulak	Quebec Nordiques	New York Rangers	Richard Zemlak	claim
Round 6
Richard Zemlak	Minnesota North Stars	New York Rangers	Al Tuer	cash

This was easily the busiest waiver draft ever up to that point. 17 players changed hands as a result of 15 draft picks. Doug Wickenheiser and Richard Zemlak were members of the Whalers and Rangers respectively for mere minutes: when the Blues took Bill Root from the Whalers in the fourth round the Blues dropped Wickenheiser from their protected list, and the Whalers claimed him as compensation for Root in lieu of cash. However, he was not placed on the Whalers' protected list. In the fifth round Wickenheiser was taken from the Whalers by the Canucks. Similarly Zemlak was dropped when the Nordiques chose Stu Kulak from the Rangers, and in the next round was taken from the Rangers by the North Stars.


Some sources state that two other players changed hands during this waiver draft: Mark Lamb from the Red Wings to the Oilers and Paul Fenton from the Rangers to the Kings. I have not found any period sources to substantiate this. I suspect they may have been offered on waivers later that same day for a reduced draft price (teams were free to set whatever waiver price they wanted up to the maximum).

←1986 Waiver Draft

1988 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1986 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1986 Waiver Draft was held on October 6. The protected lists were expanded to 17 skaters and two goaltenders, as it had been in 1982 and 1983.

The order of selection changed slightly this year. Beginning this year the non-playoff clubs from the previous season would not only have priority over the playoff clubs but they would be allowed to have the first round of selections to themselves, and all subsequent rounds until each of them had passed on their selections. Once they had all passed within a round the playoff clubs would be allowed to begin selections, and have a round of selections to themselves. All following rounds would be as they were in prior drafts: non-playoff clubs in inverse order of points in the preceding regular season followed by playoff clubs in inverse order of points.

The non-playoff clubs would also be allowed to choose whether or not to drop a player from their protected lists when they made a selection, thereby forcing the club from which they made a claim to accept the waiver price instead of having the opportunity to claim a player as compensation.

The only caveat to this scheme that afforded the non-playoff clubs exclusive rounds of selections was that in those first rounds they were not allowed to pick a player from a team in their own division.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Bob Bourne	Los Angeles Kings	New York Islanders	none	$2,500
Clark Gillies	Buffalo Sabres	New York Islanders	none	$2,500
Round 2
Mal Davis	Los Angeles Kings	Buffalo Sabres	none	$7,500
Wilf Paiement	Buffalo Sabres	New York Rangers	none	$2,500
Round 3
all non-playoff clubs passed
Round 4
Pat Hughes	St. Louis Blues	Buffalo Sabres	Eddy Beers	$2,500
Gord Sherven	Hartford Whalers	Edmonton Oilers	Bill Gardner	$40,000
John Blum	Washington Capitals	Boston Bruins	Mark Taylor	$15,000

The dismantling of the New York Islanders dynasty was in full swing by this point. They lost Dave Langevin in the '85 Waiver Draft and had already traded away Butch Goring and John Tonelli. Bob Nystrom retired in the off-season, and in the first round of the '86 Waiver Draft they lost long-time players Bob Bourne and Clark Gillies. '86-'87 would also be Mike Bossy's final season; he declared his retirement from playing hockey in 1988 due to ongoing problems with his back.

TRIVIA: Bob Bourne's son Justin, a hockey player in his own right who played in the AHL and ECHL before retiring due to injuries, married Clark Gillies' daughter Brianna in 2011.

←1985 Waiver Draft

1987 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1985 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1985 Waiver Draft was held on October 7. The rules were the same as they were in 1984.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Willy Lindstrom	Pittsburgh Penguins	Edmonton Oilers	???	$2,500
Randy Velischek	New Jersey Devils	Minnesota North Stars	???	$35,000
Brent Peterson	Vancouver Canucks	Buffalo Sabres	???	$10,000
Randy Boyd	New York Islanders	Chicago Black Hawks	Dave Langevin	$20,000
Dwight Schofield	Washington Capitals	St. Louis Blues	???	$7,500
Round 2
Mike Blaisdell	Pittsburgh Penguins	New York Rangers	???	$15,000
Dave Langevin	Minnesota North Stars	New York Islanders	???	$5,000
Round 3
Dan Frawley	Pittsburgh Penguins	Chicago Black Hawks	???	$30,000
Round 4
Craig Levie	Calgary Flames	St. Louis Blues	???	$12,500

←1984 Waiver Draft

1986 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1984 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1984 Waiver Draft was held on October 9. The rules were the same as they were in 1983 except that the protected lists were reduced to only 16 skaters and a pair of goalies.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Wayne Babych	Pittsburgh Penguins	St. Louis Blues	Tom Roulston	$12,500
Dave Pichette	New Jersey Devils	St. Louis Blues	Gary McAdam	$15,000
Jeff Brubaker	Toronto Maple Leafs	Edmonton Oilers	Terry Martin	claim
Wally Weir	Hartford Whalers	Quebec Nordiques	Marty Howe	$2,500
Craig Levie	St. Louis Blues	Minnesota North Stars	Rik Wilson	$20,000
André Doré	New York Rangers	Quebec Nordiques	Larry Patey	$12,500
Billy Carroll	Edmonton Oilers	New York Islanders	Larry Melnyk	$10,000
Round 2
Bruce Crowder	Pittsburgh Penguins	Boston Bruins	Greg Fox	$15,000
Dave Lumley	Hartford Whalers	Edmonton Oilers	Jack Brownschilde	$10,000

←1983 Waiver Draft

1985 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results

1983 NHL Waiver Draft

The 1983 NHL Waiver Draft was held on Monday, October 3. The rules were the same as they were in 1982.

Player	Picked by	Picked from	Player dropped from protected list	Cash or claim?
Round 1
Grant Mulvey	Pittsburgh Penguins	Chicago Black Hawks	Paul Gardner	cash
Mike Crombeen	Hartford Whalers	St. Louis Blues	Mark Renaud	cash
Don Nachbaur	Los Angeles Kings	Edmonton Oilers	Mark Lofthouse	cash
Terry Johnson	St. Louis Blues	Quebec Nordiques	Jack Carlson	cash
Mark Renaud	Buffalo Sabres	Hartford Whalers	John Van Boxmeer	cash
Jean Hamel	Montreal Canadiens	Quebec Nordiques	Jeff Brubaker	cash
Round 2
Mike Zuke	Hartford Whalers	St. Louis Blues	Ross Yates	cash
Dwight Schofield	St. Louis Blues	Montreal Canadiens	Bobby Crawford	cash
Jeff Brubaker	Calgary Flames	Montreal Canadiens	Greg Meredith	cash
John Van Boxmeer	Quebec Nordiques	Buffalo Sabres	Pat Price	cash
Round 3
Bobby Crawford	Hartford Whalers	St. Louis Blues	Doug Sulliman	cash

As you can see many of the choices in the last couple rounds were players who had been dropped by their respective teams when the teams made earlier choices. E.g. when the Whalers selected Mike Crombeen from the Blues they dropped Mark Renaud from their protected list, and Renaud was later claimed by the Sabres. When the Sabres selected Renaud they dropped John Van Boxmeer from their protected list; Van Boxmeer was selected in the second round by the Nordiques.

Grant Mulvey, selected with the first pick by the Penguins, was also coveted by the New Jersey Devils, who held the third overall pick. The Devils passed on that third overall pick, and all subsequent picks. The only player they were interested in was Mulvey, who had scored 30 goals in his last full season ('81-'82) but had missed almost the entire '82-'83 season with a serious knee injury. The Hawks left him exposed because they doubted that he could ever play at a high level again. After the draft the Devils' GM Billy MacMillan and Penguins' GM Eddie Johnston made a deal: the Penguins would trade Mulvey to the Devils for future considerations.

Only one problem: that was against the rules! The NHL vetoed the deal. The Penguins weren't allowed to trade Mulvey unless he had been offered on waivers first, similar to what happened between the Capitals and Canadiens with respect to Pierre Bouchard at the 1978 Waiver Draft. In the case of Grant Mulvey, the Penguins and the Devils, the only team that held waiver priority before the Devils was the Whalers and the Whalers weren't particularly interested in Mulvey. The Penguins put Mulvey on waivers on October 6 and the Devils' claim for him was successful. It took a few extra days but Grant Mulvey was a New Jersey Devil. He ended up playing 12 games for the Devils and the rest of the season with the Maine Mariners of the AHL. At the end of the '83-'84 season, having won the Calder Cup with the Mariners, Grant Mulvey retired.

←1982 Waiver Draft

1984 Waiver Draft→

NHL Draft Results