On paper it must look pretty scary to head coach John Hynes to see both of his goaltenders - Jeff Zatkoff and Brad Thiessen, on waivers. But it's likely only a temporary formality until they both clear and things return to normal in the Penguins net.
At least I think so.
In Zatkoff's case, he's a 25-year-old goaltender who never got an NHL look but has put up solid numbers that have improved each year he's been in the AHL. He's been exceptional at times this season, isn't old and doesn't have a lot of miles on him. It's hard to believe there's not at least one organization out there that isn't at least kicking around the notion of claiming Zatkoff. Perhaps he could be NHL ready one day. Who knows? The Kings never gave him a look, but someone else might. The goaltending situation in Toronto is pretty thin, just saying...
The other person on waivers is Steve MacIntyre. Would anyone be willing to claim a 32-year-old enforcer?
Maybe.
There's no one tougher in the league than MacIntyre, and nobody intimidates better than he does. That could be a huge asset for a club, especially one filled with youth and inexperience. Such players would feel a lot more comfortable with MacIntyre keeping an eye on things.
The Penguins practice tomorrow before leaving for Norfolk, where they play on Tuesday. I'll try to get a waiver update while there, and also ask about the suspension of Keven Veilleux at Wheeling. According to the Wheeling Intelligencer, the club suspended Veilleux indefinitely for allegedly using a racial slur in a game.
If true, it seems very out-of-character for Veilleux, who was always easy to talk to for interviews and extremely popular in the room. I'll ask Hynes if the suspension will be honored up here as well.