New York Islanders place Ross Johnston on waivers

The New York Islanders have placed forward Ross Johnston on waivers on Monday afternoon.

With Johstnon being on waivers – signaling the team’s final cut – the Islanders now have their 23-man roster on the eve of the NHL season.

The 29-year-old winger has spent his entire NHL career with the Islanders, making his debut during the 2015-16 campaign. Ever since, he’s been a depth forward, spending the past five years bouncing between the ice and the press box with the big club.

Known for his physical play, Johnston has nine goals and 24 points over seven NHL seasons to go along with 283 penalty minutes. He’s one of the last true enforcers, with very little to offer on the offensive front.

Before Monday, CapFriendly had the Islanders sitting at $574,958 over the salary cap. The team will feature a veteran-laden squad once again, with most of the team’s core from 2022-23 returning for the season. If Johnston clears through waivers, the Islanders will have just over $500,000 in projected cap space. Forward Simon Holmstrom could still be sent down, given he’s exempt from waivers, but Johnston’s $1.1 million hit gives the team some extra flexibility.

Johnston is signed until 2025-26.

The Islanders qualified for the postseason in the first wild-card spot in 2022-23, but was eliminated in the first round. They’ll likely enter as a bubble team once again, but do feature one of the top goaltenders in the league in Ilya Sorokin. A full season out of Bo Horvat, plus the return of Mat Barzal from injury, should give the team a bit of a scoring boost.