Canucks claim Cam Crotty from Wild, Spurgeon returns

The Wild needed 2 roster spots cleared by 1 p.m. so their captain could play tonight. Waivers handled it, though Crotty didn't end up where Minnesota expected.

Crotty's stay in Minnesota was about as short as an NHL stint gets. The Wild claimed the 27-year-old Ottawa native off waivers from the Senators on October 29, and he never played a game for them before going back on the wire. He's a former 2017 third-round pick of the Arizona Coyotes with 11 career NHL games across 3 organizations, 1 assist, and 3 scoreless games for Ottawa this season, all on a deal that pays $812,500 a year and runs out after this season. Now the Canucks have him. It's a cheap flier on a blue line they want to shake up, and Akil Thomas went on waivers to make room.

The Senators were the other team in this. Ottawa waived Crotty in October hoping he'd clear so he could go to Belleville. Minnesota claimed him instead, and when the Wild put him back on waivers, Ottawa wanted him back.

Bruce Garrioch

@SunGarrioch

Defenceman Cam Crotty was claimed by the Canucks from the Wild. #Sens were hoping to bring him back.

In Minnesota, this was mostly about the cap. Filip Gustavsson is still on LTIR, but with Crotty and Pitlick off the roster the Wild are cap-compliant without it for the first time since October 9 and are earning cap space again. That isn't exciting, but it matters. A team buried under the cap since opening week finally has a little room to work with heading toward the deadline.

Michael Russo

@RussoHockey

Doing the math, which I am soooo good at, when Cam Crotty and Tyler Pitlick are off the roster at 1 p.m., even though Filip Gustavsson will still be on LTIR, the Wild will be on the right side of the cap ledger for the first time since Oct. 9 and finally accruing cap space again

The other immediate payoff is Spurgeon. He missed 5 games on IR, and once the roster spots opened up he was activated in time to play tonight. Pitlick cleared, so the Wild keep him in the organization without using an NHL roster spot. For Minnesota, giving up a depth defenceman who never played for them is a small price for getting the captain back and the books balanced.

Then there's the paperwork. Crotty was in LA when Minnesota claimed him, and he had to fly to Vancouver to get his US work visa. Now Vancouver is his employer. He was on the Wild payroll for less than 2 weeks.

Michael Russo

@RussoHockey

One funny irony to this: When the Wild claimed Crotty from Ottawa, he was in LA. Crotty had to fly from LA to Vancouver to get his US work visa (which got him paid for less than 2 weeks by MN) Imagine being all three teams' payroll departments and his accountant right now, for that matter.

Michael Russo

@RussoHockey

#mnwild waiver news: Canucks claim Cam Crotty, Tyler Pitlick clears. So Jared Spurgeon will be activated off IR before tonight's game

Next up: whether Vancouver actually puts Crotty in the lineup, whether Akil Thomas clears, and what Minnesota does with the cap space it's finally building. For one night, though, the Wild get their captain back and the cap math works in their favor. Crotty, meanwhile, is headed back to the city where he got his visa.