Blackhawks place defenseman Nick Seeler on unconditional waivers

The Blackhawks are parting ways with defenseman Nick Seeler.  Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that Chicago has placed the blue-liner on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract.

The 27-year-old didn’t see a lot of action last season as he was the seventh defenseman for Minnesota for most of the year but got into just six NHL games plus six more on a conditioning stint.  In February, Seeler was scooped up off waivers by the Blackhawks but got into only six contests with them while also spending time as a healthy scratch.  Overall, he played in just a dozen games last year after being a regular for most of 2018-19 with Minnesota when he suited up 71 times.

Seeler cleared waivers earlier this week and was sent to AHL Rockford instead of to the taxi squad, signaling that he wasn’t in Chicago’s short-term plans.  Still, it is a little surprising to see him request this placement as he’ll be walking away from a $750K one-way salary, something that he may have some difficulty getting at this point on the open market.  With Seeler’s AAV being just $725K, the team won’t get any cap relief from his release, assuming he passes through unclaimed on Sunday.