Brandon Gignac unclaimed in waivers

Brandon Gignac signed a contract to play in the National Hockey League on February 4.

Since then, the forward has registered one point (his first career NHL goal) in the space of seven games with the big club.

He’s done well under the circumstances, but the Habs still decided to waive him yesterday afternoon.

We were waiting to see if the forward would be called up by one of the other NHL teams…

And, not surprisingly, he wasn’t.

The same goes for Alex Barré-Boulet (Lightning), who was also on waivers:

Just because he was bad doesn’t mean the Habs decided to waive him.

Kent Hughes claimed Colin White on waivers to fill a jersey by season’s end, allowing Gignac to go and lend a hand to the Rocket.

Before being recalled and signing his contract with the Habs, Gignac was, after all, one of the top scorers in the American Hockey League.

He collected 42 points in 43 games this season in Laval, but beyond his offensive production, Jean-François Houle can count on him every game because Gignac can be used in any number of ways.

His offensive qualities make him a good power-player…

And his great speed makes him an excellent short-handed player.

All of which is to say that the Rocket will be welcoming a big name into their line-up for the playoff race.

Jean-François Houle must be happy right now, because this is one hell of an addition to his lineup.

Extension

Brandon Gignac has left a great calling card in Montreal, and that’s all he had to do.

The Canadiens now know him a little better as an NHL player, which could help if the club needs to issue a recall at some point.

Elsewhere in the NHL…

You probably saw the news this morning about Adam Ruzicka.

The Coyotes player posted a video on Instagram showing him with cocaine… And you’ll understand that the Coyotes had to act quickly.

The Arizona outfit placed the forward’s name on the waivers, obviously with the aim of terminating his contract.

Not good, as the saying goes.