The Tampa Bay Lightning began the process of terminating veteran forward Josh Archibald’s contract by placing him on unconditional waivers on Saturday. He officially cleared Sunday and his contract has since been terminated.
The 30-year-old, who spent three years between 2019-2022 with the Edmonton Oilers, played 60 games for the Pittsburgh Penguins last season, scoring six goals and 12 points, and became an unrestricted free agent in the summer. He signed a two-year deal with the Lightning paying him $800,000 per year.
In a statement, Lightning general manager Julien BriseBois said he was recently informed by Archibald’s agent that he wasn’t planning on playing hockey this year, and that he wouldn’t be attending the club’s training camp.
As a replacement for Archibald, the club has signed free agent Tyler Motte, inking him to a one-year deal with a cap hit of $800,000, the same annual value Archibald’s deal carried.
Archibald was initially drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins 174th overall in the 2011 draft, and made his NHL debut in 2015-16. He was traded to the Arizona Coyotes in Dec. 2018 having only played 14 games with the Pens’ organization. He got more runway in the desert playing 107 games over two seasons and subsequently signed as a free agent in Edmonton ahead of the 2019-20 season. He’d have one of the best seasons of his career, scoring 12 goals and 21 points in 62 games with the Oilers in his first year with the club. He remained with the team for two more years before signing as a free agent with the Penguins in 2022-23.
THE NHL NOTEBOOK IS PRESENTED BY BETWAY
A new U.S. HHOF class
A fresh batch of American hockey legends will be entering the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in December as part of the 2023 class.
Former NHL players Dustin Brown and Jamie Langenbrunner will join former NHL executive Brian Burke, as well as referee Brian Murphy and Olympic gold medalist Katie-King Crowley as the latest group to join the prestigious hall.
Langenbrunner currently serves as the Boston Bruins assistant general manager after retiring in 2014 after 18 years in the NHL. He’s a two-time Stanley Cup Champion, winning it for the first time in 1999 with the Dallas Stars and once more in 2003 with the Devils. The forward scored 243 goals and 663 points throughout 1109 NHL games, spending most of his career split between the Devils and Stars. He spent his final two years on the ice with the St. Louis Blues but appeared in only four games in his last year in 2012-13.
Brown spent his 18-year NHL career entirely with the Kings, scoring 325 goals and 712 points throughout 1296 games. In 2010, he became an Olympic silver medalist with Team USA, one of the many times he’d repressed his country internationally. The forward lifted the Stanley Cup twice with the Kings, the first time being in 2012 and the second in 2014. His leadership was recognized in 2013-14 when he won the Mark Messier Leadership Award. He retired after one final year with his only team in 2022; his jersey will be raised in February 2023.
Burke worked in the NHL for over 20 years, beginning as the director of hockey operations for the Vancouver Canucks in 1987. In 1992, he switched roles and served as the general manager for the Hartford Whalers and, eventually, the USA World Championship team. A year later, he took over as the director of hockey operations for the NHL until returning to Vancouver as general manager in 1999-00. One of his most memorable moments was drafting the Sedin twins in 1999 for the Canucks, but Oilers fans know him best for his infamous spat with Kevin Lowe, which nearly resulted in fisticuffs. Burke has also held roles with the Ducks, Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames, and Penguins.
The inductees will officially be enshrined in Boston on Dec. 6th, 2023.
Here’s more on the latest US Hockey Hall of Fame inductees from Daily Faceoff‘s Steven Ellis:
King Crowley spent nearly a decade with USA’s women’s national team, putting up consistent points each season. She won Olympic gold in 1998, a silver in 2002, a bronze in 2006 and a World Championship in 2005. She also won five silver medals with USA’s World Championship squad, resulting in her taking home hardware every time she represented her country. King Crowley has been with Boston College since 2003, serving as head coach since the 2006-07 season.…Murphy is one of just eight people to have officiated over 2,000 NHL regular season games. His tenure includes nine Stanley Cup finals, as well as various other major events. Internationally, Murphy worked the 2004 and 2016 World Cup of Hockey, as well as the 2010 Winter Olympics. Murphy served as president of the NHL’s Officials Association from 2008 until 2015, and has worked as an instructor at USA Hockey camps for three decades.
