As per a report by Luke Fox of Sportsnet there are a number of potential buy out candidates this offseason in the NHL and he’s taken a closer look at 14 of them.
Fox notes that the NHL buyout window opens on September 25th and will run through October 8th. This could be one of the busier seasons for buy outs with news that the NHL will see a flat salary cap next season and a number of the teams are going to struggle to keep their rosters in tact.
This also could mean a tremendous opportunity for teams to pick up players that shake loose from teams and become excellent bargains on the marketplace.
NHL Defensmen: Best Buy Outs on the Blue Line
Among the defensemen listed on Fox’s rankings, he names Karl Alzner of the Montreal Canadiens, Anton Stralman of the Florida Panthers, Olli Maatta of the Chicago Blackhawks and John Moore of the Boston Bruins.
Alzner has two years left at $4.625 million and has spent most of his time over the past couple of seasons in the AHL with the Laval Rockets. Maatta is on the Blackhawks team who has a lot of tough decisions ahead and his two years with $4.08 million remaining make him a candidate. John Moore isn’t a terribly expensive buy out for the Bruins but Anton Stralman could cost the Panthers a pretty penny.
Related: Hjalmarsson Unwilling to Waive No-Move Clause With Coyotes
NHL Forwards: Some High-Priced Buy Outs
Fox lists James Neal of the Edmonton Oilers (three years at $5.75 million), Kyle Turris (four years at $6 million), Andrew Ladd (three years at $5.5 million), Kyle Okposo (three years at $6 million) and David Backes (one year at $6 million).
The Vancouver Canucks have two players on the list as Loui Eriksson (two years, $6 million) and Sven Baertschi (one year, $3.37 million) are in two very different places in their NHL careers.
Needless to say, these are some hefty contracts that teams are considering buying out and these contracts will be stuck on the books for some time if the respective franchises pull the trigger. Clearly, the best option would be to try and trade these deals and retain salary. That simply may not be an option.
NHL Goaltenders: Two Big Names Top the List
At the top of the goaltending list are two very prominent names. First is Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers who has one-year remaining at $8.5 million. Second, Marc-Andre Fleury is in a tricky spot with the Vegas Golden Knights. He’s got two years at $7 million remaining per season but it seems clear the Golden Knights are going to run with Robin Lehner moving forward and don’t want $12 million on their books.
Some of the names left off Fox’s list are interesting as well. Players like Shayne Gostisbehere out of Philadelphia or Zach Parise in Minnesota could be names on this list, especially considering their teams are rumored to be looking to trade them.
What about someone out of St. Louis, where the team is potentially looking at shedding salary in the hopes of taking one last shot at Alex Pietrangelo?
Next: Flyers Looking to Trade van Riemsdyk and Gostisbehere
