Cracknell claimed by Columbus; Schultz clears

Forward Adam Cracknell, who was praised for his training camp performance by Darryl Sutter, was claimed off waivers by the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Columbus claimed Cracknell. Everyone else leaguewide cleared waivers.

— James Mirtle (@mirtle) October 7, 2014

 

Schultz clearing waivers opens a path for the defenseman to be assigned to the Manchester Monarchs.

While the Blue Jackets’ claim of Cracknell reduces some depth and forward options at the periphery of the Kings’ roster, a claim of Schultz would have had a greater impact. Were Schultz to have been claimed and had the Kings experienced injury issues on the blue line early in the season, the top options for a recall would have been players such as Derek Forbort and Vincent LoVerde due to Andrew Bodnarchuk’s knee injury. While Forbort strung together an encouraging rookie season last year and has greatly improved his skating, it would still benefit the 22-year-old to continue his development at the AHL level at this point. LoVerde, a 25-year-old former Ontario Reign defenseman, has spent the better part of the last two years in Manchester and was signed to a one-year contract by Los Angeles in May.

The loss of Cracknell reduces the team’s forward options in the event they’d opt for a roster move, and after a full training camp in which he became familiar with the coaches, fellow players and the team’s systems play, it’s disappointing that he won’t be a member of the team going forward. In the event that the Kings will need to promote a forward from AHL-Manchester, a target would most likely come from a group of David Van der Gulik (who has NHL experience), Jordan Weal, Nick Shore and Brian O’Neill.