The Sabres decision to waive Tim Kennedy made almost no sense, but one reason they might have made the move was to create room in their budget for physical defenseman Shaone Morrisonn. The unrestricted free agent signed a two-year deal for an undisclosed amount Monday.
Morrisonn isn't going to help much offensively, but he should help in the size and toughness departments. He's 6-foot-4, 215 pounds and gritty. He had one goal and 12 points along with 68 penalty minutes in 68 games last season with Washington. He made $1.975 million in his final year with the Capitals.
OK, so why not keep Kennedy and sign Morrisonn? Was his $1 million arbitration award, which was about $200,000 more than they were offering, really so outlandish that Kennedy wasn't worth keeping. Very strange.
We'll could find out Tuesday afternoon, when GM Darcy Regier is expected to discuss his decisions. Other teams had until noon to make a claim for Kennedy.
--- Bucky Gleason
