Edmonton Oilers forward Adam Erne clears waivers

A day after being placed on waivers, Edmonton Oilers forward Adam Erne has cleared and is set to be assigned to the AHL’s Bakersfield Condors.

The 28-year-old has appeared in 23 games for the Oilers this season, scoring one goal and one assist. Erne’s waiver placement was the second of this season, having been there in late October. That subsequent assignment saw him play four games with the AHL’s Condors, scoring one goal.

This time around, Erne landed on waivers as the corresponding cap-clearing move to the signing of Corey Perry.

With Erne on the ice at 5v5 this season, the Oilers have done a solid job in keeping their heads above water. There, they controlled 49.14 percent of the shot attempt share, 60 percent of the goals scored (6-4), and 51.94 percent of the expected goal share. And while Erne hasn’t produced offence, he’s done a bang-up job with his physical play. His 19.16 hits per hour are among the most of forwards who have played as much as him, and well above the next closest Oilers.

Despite playing just seven games this year, Raphael Lavoie’s 12.95 hits per hour at 5v5 rank second among Oilers forwards, while Evander Kane and his 12.62 hits per hour aren’t far behind.

In Bakersfield, assuming Erne is assigned there, he will have the chance to chip in some offence on a team surging. Over Erne’s 163 games played in the American League, Erne has scored 42 goals and 94 points.

However, the Condors will be running into an issue with how many veterans they have on their roster. The AHL has rules in place limiting the amount of “veteran” players who can play on a nightly basis, and as noted by Condors play-by-play man Ryan Holt, one of Drake Caggiula, Adam Erne, Ben Gleason, Seth Griffith, Brad Malone, Greg McKegg and Lane Pederson will have to sit on a nightly basis.

This, of course, could be negated if the club recalled Ben Gleason, assigning Phil Kemp back to the AHL for the time being.