As the Columbus Blue Jackets place Gustav Nyquist on injured reserve, the team added additional scoring depth via waivers on Saturday.
The Blue Jackets claimed forward Lane Pederson off waivers from the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday, marking the 25-year-old’s third NHL organization of the season. Pederson started the season with the Carolina Hurricanes, failing to register a point in four games with the Chicago Wolves.
Pederson was acquired by the Hurricanes as part of the deal that also sent Brent Burns to Carolina over the summer, but Pederson never made it into the team’s roster. Vancouver acquired Pederson in October in a trade that also sent Ethan Bear to the Canucks, with Pederson heading to the AHL with Abbotsford. Pederson was excellent in the minors, scoring 17 goals and 24 points in 18 games before earning an 11-game call-up with the Canucks.
His last game with Vancouver, funny enough, was against Columbus last night, where he scored a shot on goal in 10:58 of ice time. Pederson has eight points in 55 games with Arizona, San Jose and Vancouver, but should be able to make Columbus’ last six. He has a physical advantage and brings decent scoring value in spurts, and Columbus — sitting near the bottom of the NHL standings — should give him opportunities to stay with the big club.
The Blue Jackets announced Friday that Nyquist will be out indefinitely with an upper-body injury after suffering an injury early against Edmonton on Wednesday. The Blue Jackets are already short on key long-term players, with Yegor Chinakhov, Jakub Voracek, Jake Bean, Justin Danforth and Zach Werenski all significantly short of time.
