Canucks lose goaltender Jiri Patera on waivers to Bruins

The Boston Bruins have claimed goaltender Jiri Patera off waivers from the Vancouver Canucks.

On Tuesday, the Canucks put Patera on waivers along with Nate Smith, Phil Di Giuseppe, and defenceman Christian Wolanin. Those three players cleared waivers and will now report to AHL Abbotsford.

The Canucks signed Patera, 25, to a two-year, two-way contract with an annual average value of $775,000 this past offseason, but with Thatcher Demko’s status up in the air, the Canucks didn’t wait long before signing proven NHL backup Kevin Lankinen to a one-year deal during training camp.

Boston’s current goaltending situation is well-documented. After dealing goaltender Linus Ullmark to the Ottawa Senators in the offseason, the Bruins lost most if not all of their negotiating power with RFA goaltender Jeremy Swayman. Swayman’s negotiations have gotten messy in recent days, with Bruins president of hockey operations Cam Neely alluding to a $64 million contract offer that Swayman’s camp was quick to say was never actually made.

“Normally, I do not release statements or discuss negotiations through the media,” Swayman’s agent Lewis Gross said in a statement. “However, in this case, I feel I need to defend my client. At today’s press conference, $64 million was referenced. This was the first time that number was discussed in our negotiations. Prior to the press conference, no offer was made reaching that level. We are extremely disappointed. This was not fair to Jeremy. We will take a few days to discuss where we go from here.”

The uncertainty surrounding Swayman’s situation meant that the Bruins needed to protect themselves in case they had to start the year without their star netminder signed. Prior to the claim, the Bruins’ tandem looked to be Joonas Korpisalo and Brandon Bussi, with former Canuck Michael DiPietro slated to be the next man up on the depth chart. By adding Patera to the mix, the Bruins increase competition and strengthen their depth at the position.

A native of Prague, Patera posted a .903 save percentage with the Henderson Silver Knights last season and has a career .902 save percentage through eight NHL games.

The Canucks cut 13 players total on Tuesday, including Jonathan Lekkerimäki, Ty Mueller, and Max Sasson. You can read more about yesterday’s roster move by clicking here.