If you’ve been following the Calgary Flames’ lineups lately, you’ve probably noticed something odd. Joakim Nordstrom, a staple on the club’s fourth line due to his penalty killing prowess, has been out of the lineup with an injury since Mar. 6.
I was asked on social media recently by a colleague why Nordstrom remains on the active roster. The short answer is: because the Flames really don’t have any more favourable options available to them.
Why not demote him?
First off, teams aren’t allowed to demote players who have documented injuries. Part of it is due to insurance reasons, part of it is due to avoiding cap circumvention by hiding injured players with big cap hits on the farm team or taxi squad.