A buyout can come back to bite NHL teams, but the immediate cap relief from parting with a player who's holding the squad back could be well worth it. Ryan Suter [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjA3NDc1NjQ2NDgwMjYyNDI5/usatsi_22332389_168400847_lowres.jpg] Ryan Suter The Dallas Stars announced they're buying out defenseman Ryan Suter. Suter had one year remaining on his contract, which carried a $3.65-million cap hit. He will instead become a UFA. Two-thirds of his salary will be spread out over the next two seasons, which comes to $783,334 in 2024-25 and $1,433,334 in 2025-26. That means the Stars will save $2,866,667 in cap space next season instead of paying his full cap hit. They'll have about $19 million in cap space with 12 of 23 roster spaces filled, according to PuckPedia [https://puckpedia.com/team/dallas-stars]. Dallas has six pending UFAs, including Joe Pavelski, who said he doesn't plan to play next season, center Matt Duchene and defenseman Christopher Tanev. They also have three pending RFAs, including defensemen Thomas Harley and Nils Lundkvist. The 39-year-old from Madison, Wis., had two goals and 15 assists for 17 points this past season. He averaged 18:56 of ice time per game, which is the least he's had since his rookie season in 2005-06. Suter averaged 20:22 of ice time in 2022-23 and 23:39 in 2021-22 when he first signed with Dallas. This is the second time Suter's been bought out of his contract. The first time was with the Minnesota Wild before the 2021-22 season, which had four seasons remaining on a 13-year contract worth about $7.5 million per year. The Wild are on the hook for $7,371,795 in 2024-25 and $833,333 for each of the following three years. That said, Suter's had a lengthy and respected NHL career so far, with 1,444 games played over 19 seasons since being selected seventh overall by the Nashville Predators in the 2003 draft. During that time, he's recorded 105 goals, 576 assists, 681 points, 1,162 hirs and 1,934 shot blocks. He also has 133 career playoff games, including back-to-back Western Conference final appearances with the Stars in the past two seasons. Suter was a first-team NHL all-star with the Wild in 2012-13, and he won a silver medal as an alternate captain of Team USA at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics and a gold medal at the 2004 World Junior Championship. He'll now join the UFA pool. Get the latest news and trending stories right to your inbox by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here [https://info.thehockeynews.com/mail/microsites/951/1/gTeQVf?_gl=1*ustlbj*_ga*NjkyMzUxMy4xNjYzNjIwMzQ3*_ga_PK63FB1PME*MTcxMzUwOTExNi40NDguMS4xNzEzNTA5MjA5LjU5LjAuMA..].
