Brandon Saad and the St. Louis Blues mutually agreed to terminate the left winger’s contract after he clears unconditional waivers on Friday.
The decision comes after Saad cleared waivers on Wednesday to make him eligible to head to the AHL.
Saad is walking away from about $5.4 million over the next season-and-a-half to continue playing in the NHL and to make himself more of an attractive asset to other clubs. His previous contract was a five-year deal with an annual cap hit of $4.5 million, set to expire after the 2025-26 season.
Unless any team claims Saad off unconditional waivers by 2 p.m. ET, Saad becomes a UFA and is eligible to sign with any team right away. Multiple reports say Saad could sign as soon as Friday. TSN’s Chris Johnston reported the Maple Leafs are expected to inquire about Saad, while The Athletic’s Jeremy Rutherford speculated the Edmonton Oilers, Leafs, Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars could be interested.
Earlier in the season, Saad was considered trade bait for the Blues. However, because of his 16 points in 43 games and salary, GM Doug Armstrong never made a deal.
Saad’s new contract will likely be significantly cheaper than his previous contract, and these four teams should also consider convincing Saad they’re the team he’s worth joining for at least the rest of this season.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Saad had a two-year stint with the Columbus Blue Jackets beginning in 2015. In both those seasons, he scored 53 points. The Pittsburgh native scored 31 goals in his first year and followed up with a 24-goal season.
These were the best years of Saad’s career for scoring and his plus-minus rating, ending the 2016-17 campaign with a plus-23.
Columbus is currently in contention for a wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference, sitting in the second spot. They’ve exceeded expectations this season and could use some extra scoring on this run to the playoffs.
The Blue Jackets have plenty of room for Saad with more than $18.7 million in projected cap space and more than $46 million in current cap space, according to PuckPedia.
Right winger Yegor Chinakhov has been sidelined for more than two months with an upper-body injury. Center Boone Jenner could make his season debut after the 4 Nations Face-Off, and Sean Monahan has a wrist injury that could keep him out until March.
With Saad having his best years in Columbus, the team being able to offer more money and the ability for another veteran presence to give secondary scoring, it’d be a good idea for GM Don Waddell to give the 32-year-old a call for a potential reunion.
Colorado Avalanche
Saad also played for the Avalanche before in his 14-year career. It was the last team he played for before joining the Blues. In that 2020-21 campaign, he scored 15 goals and 24 points in 44 games for the Avs.
Colorado is coming off a big trade that saw Mikko Rantanen move to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for Martin Necas and Jack Drury. However, the team has about $4.76 million in cap space, and it could use a bargain forward to improve its depth at left wing.
The Avalanche have dealt with the injury bug all season long. Valeri Nichushkin is currently unavailable with a lower-body injury. The 29-year-old is considered week-to-week but hasn’t played a game in 2025.
Left winger and captain Gabriel Landeskog has been out of the lineup for two seasons. The last time he featured was in the 2022 Stanley Cup final, where he hoisted the Cup after a six-game series against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Saad could help bolster Colorado’s left side in pursuit of his third Stanley Cup. If he signs for cheap, the Avalanche could still have room for another bigger move before the March 7 NHL trade deadline.
Related: Avalanche Go A Different Direction Than The Leafs, Lightning And Oilers With Rantanen Trade
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins have just two players who have scored more than 15 goals this season: David Pastrnak and Brad Marchand. Pastrnak also leads the team with 61 points in 53 games, 21 points more than the next player.
It’s no secret the Bruins could use help scoring this season. They have the fifth-worst goal differential with minus-29, and they’re ranked 27th in goals-for per game, at 2.70. Their depth scoring is not where it should be if they want to be a contender.
Saad shouldn’t be expected to solve the Bruins’ problems, and he hasn’t had the best of seasons with the Blues this year. But Boston needs help scoring goals however it can. Saad’s seven goals equal the production of Trent Frederic and Cole Koepke in the bottom six.
Saad is only two goals shy of matching the total of Elias Lindholm, who signed a seven-year contract worth $7.75 million annually with the Bruins in the off-season. GM Don Sweeney doesn’t have many assets to trade if he wants to improve his team, and the opportunity to sign Saad might be one he must seize.
Related: NHL Trade Deadline Needs: Boston Bruins And Florida Panthers
Buffalo Sabres
Heading into the season, the Buffalo Sabres sought another veteran scoring winger. They never addressed that, and they’re now last in the Eastern Conference and sit 14 points out of a wild-card spot.
Buffalo’s also just young and relatively inexperienced. The Sabres are the youngest team in the NHL this season, with an average age of 25.5, according to eliteprospects.com.
Only two players on the team are over 30 years old: left winger Jason Zucker (33) and goaltender James Reimer (36).
Saad wouldn’t play meaningful games in the spring like he might want, barring a massive hot streak for the Sabres. But he could help the squad mature with his Cup-winning experience and finally give GM Kevyn Adams the type of player he wanted.
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