Waivers

In order for a player to be assigned to the minors, they must first clear waivers unless one of the following applies:

• The player is still waivers-exempt (see below), or
• The player already cleared waivers, and since then has not:
  • played in 10 or more cumulative NHL Games, or
  • been on an NHL roster for 30 cumulative days.

When a player is placed on waivers, all other NHL teams have the right to submit a claim. Want to see which players are currently waivers eligible? Check out the PuckPedia Waivers Eligibility Tracker.

Waiver Exemptions

A player's waiver exemption is determined by their position and their waiver age when they signed their first NHL contract. Exemption lasts until the player has exceeded either their season limit or their NHL Games Played limit.

Skaters

Goaltenders

Notes

• * - If a Skater with a waiver age of 18 or 19 plays 11 or more NHL games in their first season, their waiver exemption is reduced to 3 seasons.
• ** - If a Goaltender with a waiver age of 18 or 19 plays 11 or more NHL games in their first season, their waiver exemption is reduced to 4 seasons.
• If a Skater or Goaltender with a waiver age of 25+ plays 1 or more professional games (in any professional league), they are waivers exempt for the remainder of the season.

Determining Waiver Age

Waiver age is defined by the calendar year of the NHL Entry Draft:

• 18: Player turns 18 between January 1 before the draft and September 15 after the draft.
• 19: Player turns 19 in the calendar year of the draft.
• 20: Player turns 20 in the calendar year of the draft.
• 21+: Player turns 21 (or older) in the calendar year of the draft.

Examples of Waiver Exemption Calculations

The following examples from the 2013 NHL CBA show how the waiver rules are applied in practice:

18 or 19 year old Skater, 11+ NHL Games in First Season

An 18 or 19 year old drafted in 2013 who signs immediately and plays 11+ NHL games in 2013-14 is exempt for three seasons.

Note: Once an 18 year old or 19 year old Player has played in his 160th NHL Game, he will 
immediately become eligible for Regular Waivers. 

18 year old Signs a Year Later, Plays 11+ NHL Games at Age 19

An 18 year old drafted in 2013 who does not sign until July 2014 (at age 19), then plays 11+ NHL games in 2014-15 is exempt for four seasons.

Note: As above, once 160 NHL games are played, the player is waiver-eligible immediately.

20 year old Player

A 20 year old who plays in at least one professional game in 2013-14 is exempt for three seasons.

Note: A 20 year old skater also becomes waiver-eligible immediately upon playing 160 NHL games.

25+ Player

A player age 25 or older who plays in a professional game in 2013-14 is exempt for the rest of that season only.