The Sabres should put in a waiver claim on Arthur Kaliyev

The Los Angeles Kings placed 23-year-old forward Arthur Kaliyev on waivers today. We’ll find out if the 33rd overall pick from the 2019 NHL Draft gets a change of scenery by 2 PM EST. tomorrow.

Kaliyev hasn’t been able to solidify a spot in the lineup with the Kings since he turned pro. The two sides have tried to find a new opportunity in the past year. He was expected to be dealt this past summer, but when nobody would pay up, the Kings decided to give him another chance.

Unfortunately, Kaliyev suffered a fractured clavicle in training camp. He returned from the injury a few weeks ago and was assigned to the Ontario Reign on a conditioning loan. With that loan completed, the Kings don’t have a roster spot available for him and have decided to place him on waivers.

If he’s claimed, it’ll be his first NHL action this season.

The Fit

The Sabres are now going through a season that’s already about the future. They would need a miracle run at this point to get into the playoffs and there has been no sign from this club that it’s a possibility. Kaliyev presents them the opportunity to bring in a young player for free with offensive upside.

From an on-ice perspective at 5 on 5, he has good numbers in Evolving Hockey’s model. Last season he put up a 58% expected goal and shot share in 51 games.

We have to be careful here because the Kings’ system could boost this. They’re strong systematically and we’ve seen some players not have the same success outside of the organization from an on-ice numbers standpoint.

Kaliyev’s good shoot contributed to his getting picked early in the second round. He’s a shoot-first type of player who could have a positive impact on the struggling Sabres power play.

The microstats are nothing unexpected from All Three Zones’ data. It highlights his shooting and positive numbers on puck retrievals at both ends.

I believe that he can be a third-line winger in the NHL with offensive upside in the right situation. A new opportunity could go a long way for him. I reached out to John Hoven who covers the Kings for Mayor’s Manor to see if there was more to Kaliyev being placed on waivers. His comments were insightful and made me more interested in the idea.

In particular, his thoughts about Kaliyev’s time in the AHL this season and what a fresh start could do for him jumped out to me.

I’ve covered Arty closely from the day the Kings drafted him. I’ve never seen him as happy as I did during his conditioning assignment. In my opinion — he did some soul searching during his three months off. I think he’s found his love for hockey again and really wants to resurrect his career. That means something to me. If he had a coach who believes in him, I think there’s a player there.

As I mentioned, he’s known for his shooting, but John feels that his passing is underrated.

I’d also add this, Kaliyev’s passing ability is highly underrated. Scouts and people that know hockey will agree. He’s not the one trick pony fans make him out to be.

The shot-pass from Kaliyev was perfect. pic.twitter.com/qhCRsbCI2k
— Russell Morgan (@NHLRussell) October 28, 2023

I’ll link a few articles from the Mayor Manor team at the end if you’d like more insight on the player from those who cover him regularly.

The Sabres are fourth in the waiver order based on the reversed NHL standings behind the Chicago Blackhawks, San Jose Sharks, and Nashville Predators. There’s no reason they shouldn’t be interested in making this roster move. They’ve been searching for a forward and where their season is they can take a chance on the upside.

There’s no excuse they don’t have a roster spot available with how this season has gone. The financial impact is also minimal in this situation. His cap hit is $825k and is a restricted free agent at the end of the season.

We’ll see what happens at 2 PM tomorrow.