Witt Waiver-Wired

Katie Strang reports that veteran defenseman Brendan Witt as been activated from the injured reserve list and will be placed on waivers at noon today. If not claimed by another team, Witt will report to Bridgeport.

This is certainly a case where you have to be impressed at Garth Snow's willingness to make a very tough call. While it was obvious that Witt was no longer serving the team adequately in his role, it would have been very easy for Snow to give him several more opportunities to work things out on the ice. You don't decide to waive a player of Witt's character, experience, and performance record like you're deciding which pair of shorts to leave home when you're packing for vacation and your suitcase is full.

Snow is paid to make difficult decisions in order to put the Islanders in the best position to win. Having Witt in the top six was not in the team's best interest. Nor was letting him accumulate dust in the press box. Perhaps Witt will show enough in his time at the Bridge to convince another team to take a chance on him as we get closer to the trade deadline.

While the Islanders can move on without Witt in the lineup, there is no doubt he will be missed around the Coliseum. Of course, as we've seen with other players, being waived and sent down doesn't necessarily mean the end of the line.