NHL Buyout Candidates – Atlantic Division

With the NHL salary cap projected to go up only marginally, clubs may resort to using the buyout option on existing contracts as a means of cap relief. The buyout window opens on Friday and lasts until June 30. The 32 clubs have to make some difficult decisions and likely have already selected which players to buy out.

Here is a look at the eight Atlantic Division clubs and who each of them may choose:

Boston Bruins

Mike Reilly

The Bruins signed Reilly to a three-year, $9 million deal after acquiring him from Ottawa and playing well post-deadline, and his performance in the first two seasons was underwhelming. Last season, the 29-year-old split time between the Bruins and AHL Providence. A buyout of the final year would save Boston $2.66 million on the cap next season.

Buffalo Sabres

Eric Comrie

The Sabres do not have many bad contracts. Comrie was signed a two-year, $3.6 million deal last summer and was supposed to split time with Craig Anderson, but was injured for two months and went 9-9-1, with a 3.67 GAA and a .886 save percentage.  Buffalo could keep Comrie and send him to the minors, clearing nearly $1.125 million on the cap, but with a buyout, GM Kevyn Adams would clear a contract off the books and $1.2 million in cap space.

Detroit Red Wings

Filip Zadina

Zadina signed a three-year, $5.475 million deal last summer and in 30 games, he scored seven points (3 goals, 4 assists). While it is possible that GM Steve Yzerman could find a team willing to give a second chance to a 23-year-old former sixth overall pick, a buyout of his final two years would result in a cap hit of only $380,000 in three of the four years and a credit of $525,000 in 2024.

Florida Panthers

None

The obvious candidate for a buyout the last few seasons would have been Sergei Bobrovsky, but with the questionable status of Spencer Knight and Bob coming off an excellent playoff performance, that is not going to happen. After next season, the cap penalty spreads over four years, with a $6.6 million cap hit in the first two seasons.

Montreal Canadiens

Christian Dvorak

Dvorak was acquired in 2021 as a potential replacement for Phillip Danault and has disappointed the last two seasons, with 33 and 28-point campaigns. With two years left at $4.45 million, a buyout would clear nearly $4 million in cap space in 2023 and 2024.

Ottawa Senators

Mathieu Joseph

After being acquired from Tampa Bay in the Nick Paul deal at the 2021 deadline, Joseph scored over a point per game and the Senators signed him to a four-year, $11.8 million extension. Last year, the 26-year-old scored just three goals in 56 games. The Sens may want to give the big winger another chance, but a buyout would result in a cap hit ranging from $683,333 to $1.28 million over six years.

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Tampa Bay Lightning

Philippe Myers

The former Flyer was acquired from Nashville in the Ryan McDonagh deal and signed to a one-year extension for $1.4 million with a year remaining on his current deal. Last season, Myers played only 11 games for Tampa and most of the season for AHL Syracuse. A buyout would only open up $600,000 in cap space while clearing waivers and being demoted would bury all but $275,000 of his 2023-24 cap hit.

Toronto Maple Leafs

Matt Murray

The two-time Cup winner played well for the Leafs when he was healthy, but he was almost never healthy. After being concussed in early April, Murray never played another game for Toronto but was medically cleared to be a backup in the playoffs. That clearance would allow GM Brad Treliving to buy out the final year of his contract. Ottawa retained 25% of Murray’s deal when he was traded last July, so the Leafs would have a cap hit of $687,500 and $2 million in 2023 and 2024.