The Toronto Maple Leafs placed forward Nick Ritchie on waivers, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
Ritchie has struggled to produce with his new team after signing a two-year, $5-million deal as a free agent in the offseason. He's tallied a goal and seven assists in 30 games while averaging 12:14 minutes per contest.
He's posted poor underlying numbers over the past three seasons, too.
Nick Ritchie, placed on waivers by TOR, is a bottom six power forward who is okay at generating offensive chances in tight but has not been able to finish them this season.
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) January 6, 2022
Oh, and he's taken 54 more minor penalties than he's drawn since 2018. #LeafsForever pic.twitter.com/Vm3eguKNyA
The 6-foot-2, 230-pound winger was given a chance in Toronto's top-six forward group early in the season but has since been relegated to fourth-line duties.
Even if Ritchie goes unclaimed, the Leafs will save $1.125 million in cap space by assigning him to the taxi squad, according to The Athletic's James Mirtle.
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