The Philip Tomasino trade could ultimately amount to a salary dump for the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Penguins placed defenseman Egor Zamula on unconditional waivers Monday for purposes of contract termination, according to PuckPedia.
Pittsburgh will be left with 47 roster players and three open spots when Zamula clears waivers, per PuckPedia.
If Zamula clears waivers, he’ll become an unrestricted free agent Tuesday. PuckPedia reports multiple other teams are interested in signing him to a new deal.
For Zamula, that could mean a more cap-friendly deal and potentially more playing time in the NHL.
For the Penguins, it will mean moving out some salary and opening a roster spot down the stretch.
Zamula was acquired by the Penguins in the trade with the Philadelphia Flyers for Tomasino back on Dec. 31. He was suspended by the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins on Jan. 3 for not reporting to the team.
PuckPedia had reported prior to the trade that Zamula was “willing to terminate” his Flyers contract and sign with another team for less money, presumably in hope of getting more playing time in the NHL. The 25-year-old defenseman had spent most of the Flyers’ season as a healthy scratch before he was sent down to the AHL, seemingly for good, in early December.
Zamula was playing this season under a $1.7 million cap hit, while Tomasino had a cap hit of $1.75 million.
The Penguins have now effectively moved Tomasino’s salary off the books without a buyout while clearing out a roster spot.
That extra room could potentially give Kyle Dubas more move to maneuver down the stretch of the season, either with call-ups or trades.
Giving up multiple picks in order to acquire Yegor Chinakhov could be an indication the Pens are at least considering buying at the deadline, although that will likely depend on what the playoff picture looks like by the March 6 deadline.