Predators claim former first-round pick off waivers from Blue Jackets

The Predators have added some extra forward depth as Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that they’ve claimed forward Liam Foudy off waivers from the Blue Jackets.

The 23-year-old was a first-round pick by Columbus back in 2018 (23rd overall) out of OHL London.  While he put up a point per game with the Knights in his post-draft season, consistent production has been tough to come by in the pros.  Foudy has just seven goals and 12 assists in 90 career NHL contests over parts of five seasons.  Things have gone a lot better for him in the minors with AHL Cleveland as he has 35 points in 41 appearances at that level but needed to clear waivers to get back there.  Clearly, that didn’t happen.

Once viewed as a possible important part of their rebuild, the Blue Jackets have since stockpiled several young middlemen which effectively pushed Foudy, a natural center, to the wing.  While the position swap worked better for him as a speedster, their extra depth ultimately knocked him out of the lineup first and now off the roster entirely.

Meanwhile, Nashville is in the midst of shaking up its forward group under new GM Barry Trotz.  Bringing in Foudy is a no-risk proposition for them as he’s on a contract that’s below the league minimum and he will be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights next summer.  Notably, the Preds have a full roster so a move will need to be made to add Foudy to the active roster. That could be done by placing Cody Glass on IR.  Speaking with reporters including Paul Skrbina of The Tennessean yesterday, head coach Andrew Brunette indicated that Glass will be out seven to ten days with a lower-body injury.  The minimum time for someone to be on IR is seven days so that would solve the issue for now, at least.