Oilers Top Prospect Placed Back on Waivers in Surprising Roster Move

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Liam McCormick
October 8, 2024 (12:37)

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This afternoon, former Oilers top prospect Raphael Lavoie was back on the waiver wire, and Edmonton could get him back.

The Edmonton Oilers lost the 24 year old forward on waivers to the Vegas Golden Knights yesterday, a tough sting for the Oilers to lose a top 10 ranked prospect. However, Bob Stauffer alluded yesterday that the Oilers could take Lavoie back if Vegas waives him again, and the situation came true. Apparently, Vegas was surprised that they actually got two forwards on waivers, and decided to cut Lavoie.

Hopefully, the Oilers will take this incredible stroke of good luck to get their prospect back. It was a mistake for the Oilers to allow Lavoie to get to waivers in the first place. He's shown incredible offensive talent with back to back 20+ goal seasons in the AHL, but he's just blocked by the Oilers veteran wingers. Many insiders warned that Lavoie wouldn't pass through waivers months ago, and suggested the Oilers trade him to get any assets back.

According to Derek Van Diest, the Oilers are expected to place a claim to take him back - if it shakes out for them.

Even if the Oilers claim him back from the Golden Knights, it may be difficult to still retain Lavoie. He would have to stay on the NHL roster for opening night, or be sent down to the AHL and placed on waivers again. The Oilers are near last on the list for waiver claims due to their regular season success, so we'll see if Lavoie can sneak his way down the list back to Edmonton. If no other team claims him, Lavoie can go straight to the Condors.

The Oilers will be so incredibly fortunate if this mistake turns out not to bite them in the behind. The best case scenario is now looking like a real possibility, where in the Oilers re-claim Lavoie and send him back for another year developing with the AHL's Bakersfield Condors.