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Ryan Johansen was placed on unconditional waivers by the Philadelphia Flyers on Monday, for the purpose of terminating his contract due to a material breach.

The Flyers refrained from commenting on the nature of the breach.

Johansen never played for Philadelphia after the forward was acquired in a trade from the Colorado Avalanche on March 6, along with a first-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, for defenseman Sean Walker, because of a hip injury. Prior to the trade, the 32-year-old had 23 points (13 goals, 10 assists) in 63 games for the Avalanche.

After acquiring Johansen in the trade, the Flyers intended to put him on waivers. However, they were unable to do so due to his hip injury.

In June, Daniel Briere, the general manager of Philadelphia, expressed uncertainty about the status of Johansen’s injury recovery.

Briere stated, “Should he be healthy, he would be at camp with the opportunity to display his abilities. However, if he is not in good health and requires surgery, he will need to undergo that process.”

Johansen had one year left on his eight-year, $64 million contract ($8 million average annual value) with the Nashville Predators, which he signed on July 28, 2017. His $4 million salary would have been counted in the Flyers’ salary cap for this season. However, when the Predators traded him to the Avalanche on June 24, 2023, they retained half of his salary.

The Columbus Blue Jackets chose Johansen as the No. 4 pick in the 2010 NHL Draft. Across 13 NHL seasons with the Blue Jackets, Predators, and Avalanche, he has accumulated 578 points (comprising 202 goals and 376 assists) in 905 games. Additionally, Johansen has scored 54 points (19 goals and 35 assists) in 67 Stanley Cup Playoff matches.