Blues Place Porter on Waivers (again)

[stlbluesfan4ever]

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The Blues have placed veteran Chris Porter on waivers for a period that ends on Saturday.

Any NHL team can claim Porter, who has 129 games, 10 goals and 24 points of NHL experience. The 29-year old left winger got the short end of the roster stick this season when the Blues signed free agent Brenden Morrow.

Porter played well for the Blues down the stretch last season. When Scott Nichol was injured, Porter moved from the wing to center the fourth line and the “CPR Line” of Adam Cracknell, Porter and Ryan Reaves was impacting during a six game playoff loss to Los Angeles.

Both Porter and Cracknell were rewarded with one-way NHL contracts after the season ended. But as the new season approached, the Blues took an opportunity to add experienced depth by signing Morrow.

 

Porter wound up with the Chicago Wolves, the team's American Hockey League affiliate. He recently joined the Blues for two games, but returned to Chicago when Morrow came off injured reserve. Porter has no goals and five assists in eight games for Chicago.

The Blues are up against the leagues' salary cap. If Porter is claimed, his two-year deal and $675,000 cap hit comes off the books. But general manager Doug Armstrong emphasized there is more to Porter's situation than budget keeping. He believes Porter belongs in the NHL and deserves the opportunity elsewhere if it's out there.

“He played well while he was here,” Armstrong said of Porter's recent contribution. “And he played very well for us last season. He's done everything we have asked of him and we believe he's an NHL player. We're not an organization that wants to hold a player down and deny him that opportunity if it's there.”

 

 

 

Is it just me, or does it seem like the Blues are trying to get someone to take Chris Porter's 2 year $675,000 contract off their hands to free up salary room.

 “He played well while he was here,” Armstrong said of Porter's recent contribution. “And he played very well for us last season. He's done everything we have asked of him and we believe he's an NHL player. We're not an organization that wants to hold a player down and deny him that opportunity if it's there.”

 

doesn't that sound like a sales pitch. and As much as I usually like to give Armstrong the benefit of the doubt, I think letting a promising young player just walk away, for free at that, just to add another "veteran" to the mix, a veteran who is only signed here for this season and who could easily walk away for more money or with recent injury issues the last few seasons for morrow, is completely insane. I think porter has a much promising and more successful future than Morrow, and to keep opening him for waivers is a waste of organization depth and a very short minded decision, I don't think morrow can bring anything to the table worth throwing talent away just to hope he stays healthy and give us a short term boost. we shouldn't make decisions for the blues future based on middle aged players' past glory days.

[bunnyman]

It seems short-sighted the way the Blues are dealing with Porter. Did Porter try to sleep with Armstrong's wife or girlfriend? Did Porter say something irreparable to Hitchcock? Did Porter break the heart of a daughter of a front office muckety-muck? It just seems personal, that's all.