The Toronto Maple Leafs placed 25-year-old forward Michael Amadio on waivers today, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
The move leaves Toronto with no extra forwards on the roster as Ilya Mikheyev remains on injured reserve. While Petr Mrazek is healed from injury and ready to return against the Detroit Red Wings on Saturday, he was never officially placed on injured reserve. It’s possible that there’s a corresponding call-up coming from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies.
Head coach Sheldon Keefe inserted Amadio into the lineup in only three games up until this point, averaging only 9:10 per game with no points and a +1 rating. Keefe deployed Amadio exclusively on the fourth line with Jason Spezza and Wayne Simmonds, a role that offseason addition Nick Ritchie finds himself in now after a slow start influenced a massive line shuffle.
Playing parts of five seasons in the league, Amadio’s played 176 contests with the Los Angeles Kings, Ottawa Senators, and Maple Leafs. 168 of those 176 games came in a Kings uniform, as well as all of his 16 goals and 39 of his 40 career points.
The likelihood of a claim here is relatively low, as he’s done little in the past two seasons to show that he’s an everyday NHL player. If he clears, he’ll likely report to a Marlies team that’s dealing with a significant injury to top prospect Nicholas Robertson.