Ennis had been bought out by the Minnesota Wild during the recent buyout win ahead of the final season in his five-year, $4.6 million contract originally signed by the Buffalo Sabres during the 2014 offseason.
Once a regular 20-goal threat, Ennis has seen his career sidetracked the past three years by multiple concussions and a double hernia surgery, among other injuries.
Injury troubles of that magnitude made it especially hard for the highly-skilled, lightning-quick Ennis to play the kind of courageous game that made him effective and productive despite his pint-sized 5’9, 161-pound frame, one that relied on his ability to jump into holes in coverage in traffic around the net and slot.