Don Sweeney and the Boston Bruins Claim Former First Round Pick on Waivers
The Boston Bruins have a clear need for talent in their top-nine, and now it appears they have found that upgrade in Oliver Wahlstrom on waivers.
Waivers in the NHL has been hectic in the past week, and on Friday we got perhaps the biggest shock of all when the New York Islanders decided to waive both Pierre Engvall and the Oliver Wahlstrom.
While Engvall was less of a shock, many fans were in disbelief when they waived a former No. 11 overall draft pick, who is yet to even approach his prime at the NHL level.
Now, unsurprisingly, Wahlstrom has been claimed, with the Boston Bruins swooping in to land the 24-year old winger that has yet to live up to expectations in the stagnant Islanders offense.
At 24-years of age, Wahlstrom has 220 games of NHL experience under his belt, tallying 36 goals and 71 points over that time, with many believing he can be a solid top-six player if given the time to develop.
In 2024/25, the native of Maine has put together just 2 goals and 4 points in 27 games played, with his career high of 24 points coming back in 2021/22, making it three years of little production.
As for Engvall, he unsurprisingly cleared through waivers as teams didn't want to be on the hook for the deal he was given by the Islanders, and now, a team that already struggled offensively needs to find their way after losing one of their most talented young players.
It's unclear at this point if Wahlstrom will ever make a huge name for himself in the NHL, but in Boston he has much more talent around him, and if given the chance he could take a major leap forward over the next few months.
