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Betts Back to Philly

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By: Tyler J. Altemose (@HockeyGuyTy)

Sometimes even the most perfect plans go awry.

On Tuesday the Philadelphia Flyers placed forward Blair Betts on waivers, a move which surprised many Flyers fans (myself included). On Wednesday he was acquired by the Montreal Canadiens. While most of Flyers nation spent their time deriding Flyers GM Paul Holmgren as some kind of incompetent fool, I considered the methodology for taking that course of action.

It turns out that the plan was pretty ingenious.

What you, the reader, need to understand is that the crux of this issue lies on the newcomer Sean Couturier and the size of the Flyers Reserve List. In layman’s terms, if the Flyers want Sean Couturier to play more than 10 NHL games this season, they need to get rid of a player. For a more “legal” answer to the issue, I reference you to Article 1 of the CBA which defines Reserve List:

‘Reserve list’ means the list of all players to whom a Club has rights including all Unsigned Draft Choices, all Players signed to an SPC (whether or not currently playing in the NHL), and all Players who have signed an SPC but who have subsequently been returned to the Juniors. A Club may have on its reserve list, at any one time, not more than 90 players, which shall include the following: a) Not more than 50 Players signed to an SPC and not less than 24 Players and 3 goalies under an SPC. Age 18 and 19 Players who were returned to Juniors, and have not played 11 NHL games in one season, shall be exempt from inclusion in the 50 Player limit.”

The Flyers had 51 players in their Reserve List as of Tuesday. However, two of them (Sean Couturier and Marcel Noebels) are included in that exception I emphasized above, so technically the team was at 49. Blair Betts was the 50th contract. Sean Couturier, provided he plays more than 10 NHL games, is 51.

That is a problem.

So what Holmgren did to alleviate the situation was waive a player. That player was Blair Betts. There was a wave of criticism following the move because of fear of who would replace him in the fourth line center position (the answer, by the way, is Maxime Talbot) and why Betts was waived over the oft-scratched Jody Shelley.

The reason that Betts was waived over Shelley is because the Flyers needed assurance that the player being waived would be picked up and open up that spot on the Reserve List for Sean Couturier. Flyers fans need to think of the other 29 teams in the league. Would a GM of another team opt to pick up a player with a more expensive cap hit and a more limited role, or a veteran player who plays his role well and is at a convenient price? The answer came early Wednesday afternoon when the Canadiens picked Betts up. That freed up the roster spot for Couturier, meaning that he could play as many games as he wants this season.

However, just four days after being picked up, Blair Betts is on his way back to the Flyers after failing his physical with the Canadiens, this according to several confirmed reports.

But why? Can the NHL do that?

You bet they can.

13.20(a) The Club acquiring a Player by Waiver claim shall take Assignment of the Player’s SPC. Nevertheless, if the Commissioner determines that a Player acquired by Waiver claim is not physically fit at the time the claim is made, the Club making the claim may refuse to take an assignment of such Player’s SPC and the request for waivers shall be canceled.”

And that’s exactly what happened. Betts failed his physical in Montreal and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman sent him back on a one-way trip to the City of Brotherly Love.

So what options do the Flyers have at this point? Well, the most obvious option is to put Betts back on waivers again. But that move doesn’t seem very viable given the circumstances. If Betts passes through waivers again he’s still a part of the Flyers Reserve List which means that Couturier is limited to a 10 NHL game maximum.

The Flyers could also embark upon a trade. That could alleviate some cap space and open up a roster spot for Couturier (assuming the trade is for picks and not any players, or assuming the Flyers trade away more players than they acquire).

Or they can just stay put. Theoretically, they just have to send Couturier down to the Juniors before he plays 11 NHL games. They’ll be over the salary cap with Betts’ salary on the books, but that problem is easily solved by placing Ian Laperriere on Long-Term Injured Reserve and using the league’s LTIR relief to keep them cap-compliant.

It’s a murky situation, yes. But the Flyers have options. Stay tuned to The Hockey Guys to see how the situation develops.

The post Betts Back to Philly appeared first on The Hockey Guys.


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