Ex Viper Hammond Clears Waivers:

Former Vernon Vipers goaltender Andrew Hammond has cleared waivers and now eligible to be sent to the minors.

Hammond is in his third season with the Ottawa Senators has spent the previous three seasons with the American Hockey League Binghamton Senators & NHL Ottawa Senators.

After four seasons with Bowling Green University, Hammond signed his first pro contract with the Ottawa Senators on March 20th 2013. Hammond attended the Chicago Blackhawks 2012 development camp and Ottawa Senators 2013 development camp.

Hammond made his NHL debut  February 27th 2014 vs the Detroit Red Wings. Hammond was called up that night from the American Hockey League as the backup for Senators starting goaltender Robin Lehner. Hammond would replace Lehner late in the 2nd period who was pulled after giving up six goals on fifteen Detroit shots. Hammond would finish the game playing just over thirty four minutes stopping all eleven Red Wing shots in a 6-1 loss to Detroit. Hammond made his first career NHL start February 18th 2015 vs the Montreal Canadians, recorded 42 saves in a 4-2 win over the Habs for his first career NHL victory.

Hammond played parts of two years in Vernon (2007-2009) after coming over in a trade with the Surrey Eagles during the 2007-08 season. In 52 regular season games with the Vipers Hammond posted a (33-15-1) record recording 6 shutouts.

Andrew Hammond's Player Profile:

http://www.eliteprospects.com/player.php?player=38007

This was in the Ottawa Citizen Newspaper:

Hammond clears waivers, heading to Binghamton

Bruce Garrioch

Published on: November 20, 2016

The Hamburglar’s next stop could be at a drive-thru in Binghamton.

Just over a week ago, Senators backup goaltender Andrew Hammond refused to accept a conditioning assignment to the club’s AHL affiliate in Binghamton. But this time, he won’t be given any choice after he cleared waivers Sunday at noon — so he’s now eligible to be sent to the minors.

And, if that happens, the roster shuffling won’t stop there, either.

Senators GM Pierre Dorion placed winger Matt Puempel on waivers Sunday and if he clears Monday, he’ll likely be assigned to Binghamton. The 23-year-old has only four goals in 52 games — and none in 13 this season. He started on the first line Saturday against Florida and was quickly moved to the fourth line.

Still, the decision to waive Hammond is much larger for the organization. The Senators were off Sunday so no decision on Hammond’s future was announced but he’s expected to be sent to Binghamton and, at this point, the club isn’t considering lending him to another organization.

How the mighty have fallen.

Hammond was hopeful somebody would be willing to pick up the $1.35-million cap hit he has left on his contract through next season but several teams are up against the cap and don’t believe he’s the answer to their goaltending issues, especially with the term he has left on his deal.

The chief architect of miracle run to the playoffs in 2015 with a 20-1-2 record, the 28-year-old has never been able to recapture that magic while struggling with injuries and inconsistency the last two years. Plus, the arrival of Mike Condon from the Pittsburgh Penguins in a trade has pushed Hammond aside.

Dorion decided to go get Condon for depth when Hammond suffered a groin injury on Oct. 28 in Calgary and No. 1 goalie Craig Anderson had to leave the team to be with his wife Nicholle after learning she’d been diagnosed with throat cancer.

At Nicholle’s urging, Anderson returned to the team and based on her treatment schedule, coach Guy Boucher has indicated Anderson’s going to be available more than the club originally expected. That’s why the Senators have decided they no longer need to carry three goaltenders.

The Senators were off Sunday and will practise Monday before boarding a train to Montreal to prepare to face the Canadiens on Tuesday at the Bell Centre. Asked Saturday night if it was time to clear up the crowded crease, Boucher deferred the query to Dorion.

“That’s more of an organization question for Pierre,” Boucher said.

Being passed over on waivers has to be a difficult blow for Hammond.

He didn’t accept the conditioning stint because he felt he’d be better off here working with goalie coach Pierre Groulx and taking shots from NHL players. It’s believed Hammond was worried if he went down to Binghamton and struggled, it might hurt his trade value around the league.

When Hammond decided not to go to Binghamton last Saturday, Dorion sent an e-mail to the NHL’s 29 other GMs Monday saying if they had any interest in Hammond, they should give the club a call. It’s believed the San Jose Sharks and Los Angeles Kings only showed mild interest.

Clearly neither team was prepared to make the move.

“Most teams consider him an AHL goalie,” said a league executive Sunday.

The key for Hammond is to prove his doubters wrong. If he does go down, he has to do it with the right attitude and work his way back. It’s not like he hasn’t done it before and Anderson pointed that out when asked about Hammond’s situation Saturday night following the club’s 4-1 loss to Florida.

“Me and Hammy get along great. This is the business side of hockey that sucks for everyone,” Anderson told Postmedia. “I’ve been there and I’ve gone through waivers and what I realized is when a door closes, another window opens.

“You’ve got to make the most of it. You can look at every situation two ways: Half-empty or half-full for that glass. If you go with the right frame of mind and you get that attitude that I know he has in him that he can fight, (it could work out). Wherever he goes from here, he’s got that ability to be a game-changer. Sometimes it’s a tough situation to be in but it makes you stronger at the end of the day.”