The Washington Capitals have placed defenseman Hardy Häman Aktell on unconditional waivers to mutually terminate his contract. The 26-year-old Swede was in the middle of his second season with the AHL’s Hershey Bears.
AP’s Stephen Whyno was first on the news. The move indicates that Häman Aktell likely already has a contract arrangement with a team overseas.
Häman Aktell, a 2024 Calder Cup champion with the Bears, has nine points (9a) in 27 games for Hershey this season. He has recently been out of the team’s lineup with a lower-body injury.
The Capitals re-signed Häman Aktell to a one-year, two-way contract after his successful first season in the organization that saw him make his NHL debut and play six games at the top level. He recorded one assist in those NHL games before heading back to Hershey, where he recorded nine points (5g, 4a) in 17 postseason games during their successful championship defense.
The 6-foot-3, 216-pound rearguard was originally signed in 2023 after he spent three seasons with the Växjö Lakers in the SHL. Häman Aktell was drafted by the Nashville Predators in the fourth round of the 2016 NHL Draft but never signed an entry-level contract with the club.
Häman Aktell is the third Hershey defender from last year’s team to be sent elsewhere this season after Dmitry Osipov was traded to the Utica Comets in late November and Logan Day was granted his release by the Bears in December. Day then went on and signed with the KHL’s Traktor Chelyabinsk, joining 2023 Calder Cup champion Zach Fucale.
