Chiefs trim roster by placing Cardiff on waivers

The Spokane Chiefs have cut their roster to 27 players in preparation for their regular-season opener on Saturday against the Tri-City Americans in Kennewick.

On Monday, the team announced that Forward Eli Zummack and goaltender Donovan Buskey both will return to their home clubs in the British Columbia Major Midget League while 20-year-old Jacob Cardiff has been placed on waivers.

“Zummack and Buskey are both players that we are very high on and we expect to be part of our team in the future,” Chiefs general manager Scott Carter said in a news release. “This move puts them at a level where they can be very high-end players and get ice time.”

Cardiff appears to be a victim of numbers. Before the forward was placed on waivers, the team had five “overage” players and they are allowed only three.

The older players remaining are goalie Jayden Sittler and forwards Keanu Yamamoto, Dominic Zwerger and Markson Bechtold. Zwerger, of Austria, is also an import player.

The team also has newly drafted Czech players Ondrej Najman and Pavel Kousal. The team has until Oct. 15 to get down to three overage players and two import players.