The Pittsburgh Penguins have placed forward Andreas Johnsson on unconditional waivers for the purposes of terminating his contract.
Should Johnsson go unclaimed by 2 p.m. Thursday, the team can formally cut ties with him.
The Penguins signed Johnsson to a one-year contract worth $800,000 on July 7 with hopes he could recapture the form that made him a 20-goal scorer with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2018-19. But those ambitions were never realized as Johnsson was assigned to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League (AHL) after clearing waivers Oct. 6.
The 28-year-old Johnsson had a quiet preseason with the Pittsburgh Penguins, appearing in three games without any points and four shots. After being assigned to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, he played in one preseason AHL game with no points and two shots.
Johnsson has been a healthy scratch for all 10 of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s regular season contests this season due to what has been termed as a “personal matter.”
Johnsson’s departure, once it is official, will leave the Pittsburgh Penguins with 47 contracts, three below the NHL’s limit of 50 for a season.
A native of Sweden, the left-handed Johnsson could sign with a team in Europe once his NHL contract is formally terminated.
