East Notes: Comrie, Kampf, Joseph

Having to place both Tyson Jost and Jacob Bryson on waivers to make space on their roster over the last several weeks, the Buffalo Sabres still find themselves in a difficult situation. They still maintain a full 23-man roster, and will once again need to make room, as veteran center Zemgus Girgensons is nearing activation off of the injured reserve.

One of the clearer choices in who will ultimately sent down is goaltender Eric Comrie, who has not played in a game since earlier this month on December 5th. Seeing only a total of seven games up to this point, Comrie carries a 1-5-0 record on the year, with a .863 SV% and a 4.01 GAA. With young netminders Devon Levi and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen carrying the bulk of the load between the pipes, it makes little sense for the Sabres to continue with three netminders.

In an article from Bill Hoppe of Buffalo Hockey Beat, Comrie acknowledges his placement on waivers as a legitimate possibility and is ready to play wherever Buffalo believes he is best suited. Comrie will be no stranger to the waiver wire, as he has previously been waived five times, and has been claimed four of those times.

Other notes:

• Jonas Siegel of The Athletic reports that David Kampf will be a healthy scratch tonight for the Toronto Maple Leafs. After spending two years being a formidable bottom-six forward for Toronto, the organization rewarded Kampf, signing the forward to a four-year, $9.6MM contract extension over the summer, hoping to gain some long-term stability in the bottom of their forward core. Unfortunately, Kampf has not lived up to expectations this season, only amassing seven points in 33 games, and seeing his ice time drop by more than two minutes on average.
• Relaying on a note from a team spokesperson, Seth Rorabaugh of Tribune-Review Sports reports that Pittsburgh Penguins’ defenseman Pierre-Olivier Joseph will be out of the lineup tonight with an illness. Since returning to the team from an undisclosed injury on December 12th, Joseph has played in three games for Pittsburgh, averaging just under 13 minutes a night, adding zero points.