Maple Leafs’ Ryan Reaves among five players on pre-NHL Trade Deadline waivers

There was a lot of waiver wire movement on the final day before the NHL Trade Deadline.

On Thursday, the Toronto Maple Leafs placed forward Ryan Reaves on waivers, as did the Carolina Hurricanes with forward Riley Stillman. Goaltender Evan Cormier (Florida Panthers), forward Cameron Hebig (Utah Hockey Club) and forward Tyler Pitlick (Boston Bruins) also hit the wire 25 hours before the deadline.

Reaves is certainly the biggest name on the list. The veteran tough guy has been a sparse face on the Maple Leafs’ lineup card for most of the season. He’s played in just 35 of the team’s 62 games, having appeared in just two contests since the 4 Nations Face-Off break.

The 38-year-old, who has only posted two assists so far this season, is in the second season of the three-year contract that he signed with Toronto on July 1, 2023. He’s totaled four goals and eight points in 84 games over two years.

Stillman is seemingly well on his way back to the Hurricanes’ American Hockey League affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. The Peterborough, Ontario native has played just twice for Carolina this season, last getting into the lineup on Feb. 25 when the Montreal Canadiens shut out the Canes. He hasn’t registered a point in the NHL, posting a plus/minus of -1 while averaging less than five minutes of ice time.

Hebig was signed to a pro-rated one-year contract with Utah not long before he was put on waivers. He has been with UHC’s primary affiliate, the Tucson Roadrunners, all season. In 48 games in the AHL, he has 20 goals and 17 assists for 37 points, leading all Roadrunners in goals and third in points.

Hebig, who represented the Pacific Division in the AHL All-Star Classic this year, has never played an NHL game.

Like Hebig, Pitlick was signed to a one-year contract for the remainder of the 2024-25 season. The 33-year-old had been playing for the Bruins’ farm team, the Providence Bruins. In 43 games in the ‘A,’ Pitlick has posted 16 goals and 17 assists for 33 points. Pitlick has spent considerable time in the NHL over his career, making stops with the Edmonton Oilers, Dallas Stars, Canadiens and New York Rangers, among other teams.

Stillman has scored two goals and five points in 20 games with the Wolves this year.

Cormier spent the entirety of the 2024-25 season with the Panthers’ ECHL affiliate, the Savannah Ghost Pirates. In 27 games, the 27-year-old has a 14-9-2 record, a 3.56 goals-against average, and a .881 save percentage.