Goaltender Cory Schneider #35 of the Vancouver Canucks plays against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on October 1, 2010 in Anaheim, California. Vancouver won 4-2. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)Stephen Dunn/Getty Images
All that last-minute roster manipulation by the Vancouver Canucks earlier this week was designed to maximize the salary-cap savings from Sami Salo's long-term injury. But it came about because defenceman Ryan Parent, acquired from Nashville on Wednesday, cleared waivers.
That sent the Canucks brass back to the drawing board, and the end game is an opening night roster of 23 players that is $19,890 (all currencies U.S.) below their spending limit of $59.31 million (Mason Raymond achieved a $90,000 bonus last year that is deducted from Vancouver's 2010-11 cap).
Had Parent been claimed, the Canucks were contemplating a roster of just 21 players. They would have been about $100,000 below the cap. Instead, they begin the 2010-11 NHL season with eight defencemen (Parent and Aaron Rome in reserve) and a spare forward Jeff Tambellini.
Here's how the Canucks will lineup for their NHL regular-season opener against the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday:
Daniel Sedin Henrik Sedin Mikael Samuelsson
Mason Raymond Ryan Kesler Raffi Torres
Peter Schaefer Manny Malhotra Jannik Hansen
Tanner Glass Alex Bolduc Guillaume Desbiens
Christian Ehrhoff Alexander Edler
Dan Hamhuis Kevin Bieksa
Andrew Alberts Keith Ballard
Roberto Luongo
Backup goaltender: Cory Schneider.
Healthy scratches: Aaron Rome, Ryan Parent, Jeff Tambellini.
Injured: Alex Burrows, Rick Rypien, Sami Salo.