Penguins place $27 million defenseman on the NHL waiver wire

The NHL's holiday freeze is officially over, and after seeing plenty of activity on the waiver wire in the past 48 hours, we got a massive trade on Monday between two Metropolitan Division foes.

In that deal, the Penguins landed young winger Yegor Chinakhov, giving up two draft picks and a veteran in the process, and now, they needed to make a corresponding roster move.

It was a bold deal by the Penguins, who are clearly betting on the upside of Chinakhov, and with the corresponding move, they're putting a lot of faith in their young players to lead them forward.

Now, we officially know what that move is, as Seth Rorabaugh is officially reporting that they have designated Ryan Graves as 'non-roster', and are set to place him on waivers on Tuesday.

This isn't the first time it's happened since Graves' arrival in Pittsburgh, as he has put together two very disappointing seasons at the NHL, with 10 appearances with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in the AHL in 2025/26 as a result.

Now, that's potentially set to become his permanent home, and after posting 7 points in those 10 games, it could end up being the best place for him after struggling to make the NHL his home in Pittsburgh.

Ultimately, Graves arrived from Colorado full of expectations of a bigger role with the Penguins, but has struggled for consistent play, and now, his days as a full-time NHLer could be officially over.