Chicago Blackhawks make bold move, place forward on waivers
The Chicago Blackhawks are coming off a strong 2-1 overtime win against the Minnesota Wild, but GM Kyle Davidson wakes up the hockey world with another bold move.
According to reports, the Chicago Blackhawks have placed forward Andreas Athanasiou on waivers.
During hockey insider Elliotte Friedman's 32 Thoughts Podcast, the NHL pundit made a bold claim regarding Athanasiou, and his speculation has just been confirmed by the by the organization.
-Elliotte Friedman
As it stands, the Chicago Blackhawks are currently sitting at a 6-9-1 record, slowly climbing back up the NHL rankings.
Through 16 NHL regular season games, Andreas Athanasiou has only played 5, being a healthy scratch for a majority of the season, scoring 0 points.
According to SI, Athanasiou is in the final season of a two-year contract signed with the Blackhawks in 2023. A 40-point (20G-20A) season in 2022-23 earned Athanasiou that two-year deal that costs the Blackhawks $4.25 million against the salary cap.
Andreas Athanaiou is one of the NHL talents with so much promise, but has failed to generate any sort of significant traction at the pro level.
Widely recognized for his speed, I think it's fairly safe to say that Athanasiou's best days are behind him.
During the 2018-2019 season with the Detroit Red Wings, Athanasiou showed signs of elite offensive capabilities, notching 30 goals and 24 assists that season.
Despite the hype, The first year of his new opportunity in Chicago was a total bust. In just 28 games regular season games played, Athanasiou scored a pair of goals and seven assists for nine total points, posting a -7 rating on the ice.
As it stands, Kyle Davidson has pulled the trigger, placing Andreas Athanasiou on waivers.
He still poses some offensive upside, and perhaps a change of scenery is exactly what he needs to get his game going again.
