A Shocking Split: Kreider Leaves Millions Behind to Bail Out the Ducks

The Anaheim Ducks backed themselves into a brutal cap corner after matching Leo Carlsson’s $18M AAV offersheet. Add in the A.J. Greer signing and the big‑ticket deal for Pavel Mintyukov, and suddenly Anaheim was staring at just over $9 million in space with Cutter Gauthier still unsigned.

The expectation was clear: a veteran had to go. Chris Kreider, Alex Killorn, or Troy Terry — someone was going to be the casualty. What the Ducks didn’t expect was a veteran doing them a massive favor.

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Elliotte Friedman Reporting

According to Elliotte Friedman, the Ducks and Chris Kreider have mutually agreed to place him on waivers for the purpose of contract termination. Kreider is signing off on the move and walking away from $4 million in guaranteed money.

For Anaheim, the impact is immediate: $6.5 million comes off the books, giving the Ducks a sudden surge of flexibility to get Gauthier’s deal finalized.

Losing Kreider won’t be painless. He brought a real veteran backbone, lived at the net‑front, and posted 22 goals and 50 points in 75 games last season. Players of that calibre almost never voluntarily walk away from guaranteed money, but Kreider want to go play in the East and clearly believes he can cash in elsewhere — and Anaheim gets the breathing room it desperately needed.

Marco D’Amico also cleared things up, that the contract will only be terminated if none of the other 31 teams claim him on waivers. Everyone might just wait, and sign him to the deal they want after the contract is terminated, but a team could still snag him now.

And, to be clear, his contract would only be temrinated if none of the other 31 teams claimed him off waivers.

It's still possible that an eastern team puts in a claim. However, one wouldn't be wrong in thinking he could sign a new deal once his current deal is terminated.

— Marco D'Amico (@mndamico) September 9, 2026

Gauthier Rumors

Former NHLer Keith Yandle dropped a notable nugget on Spittin’ Chiclets: he’s heard Gauthier could land the same total dollars as Carlsson’s $90 million, just stretched over an extra year. That structure would land at six years × $15M AAV.

With Kreider’s $6.5M cleared, the Ducks now sit around $15.5 million in cap space — more than enough to make that number work.

Yandle also mentioned Gauthier isn’t accepting anything less than Carlsson’s money. If true, this six‑year setup at least delivers the same total payout, just distributed differently.

What It All Means

In the end, Anaheim may have stumbled into a saving grace. Starting the season with Gauthier sitting out would’ve been a disaster. Locking him up is far more important than Kreider, and the fact Kreider willingly walked away from his contract essentially bailed the Ducks out a few weeks before opening night.

Kreider now gets to chase a contender, go back playing in the East and hunt for one more big payday. Anaheim, meanwhile, finally has the cap space it needed at the exact moment it needed it.

The only question left: Is $15M AAV enough to get Gauthier’s name on paper?

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