Fans were outraged that Lavoie hit waivers as Lavoie is only 23 years old and certainly could be a pivotal member of the Oilers defensive core for years to come.
Oilers Have Been Hiding An Injury
A major revelation has come to light revealing why the Oilers placed Lavoie on waivers and that they have been hiding an injury.
The #LetsGoOilers waiving Lavoie, Pederson, & Gleason could suggest Niemelainen is injured. Injured players cannot be sent down. Since he's on a 1-way contract, his full cap hit counts against cap while injured (he does not qualify for Season Opening IR).
This makes a lot of sense as Niemelainen would have likely been sent down before Lavoie but an injury could have forced the Oilers' hand here.
It will be unfortunate if the Oilers wind up losing Lavoie because of a poor situation where the worst case scenario came to fruition.