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. Jack Campbell [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjA3MjIzNzk0NDI5ODYzMDIy/usatsi_21853692_168400847_lowres.jpg] Jack Campbell Buyouts are a difficult move for NHL front offices, even if it's sometimes necessary. They provide instant cap relief for a dreadful signing, although the subsequent cap penalty often serves as a reminder of what was a blunder in most cases. But when cap relief is desperately needed, any disappointment and cap penalties are minor prices to pay. The following five players are prime buyout candidates as we approach the 2024 NHL off-season. Buyout information is according to PuckPedia. JACK CAMPBELL, G, EDMONTON OILERS $5-million cap hit, signed through 2026-27 You’d be hard-pressed to find a free agent contract over the last decade that’s aged as poorly as Jack Campbell's. When he signed his big-ticket contract, the 2010 11th-overall selection was coming off a two-and-a-half-year span when he resurrected his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs — posting a .916 save percentage across 77 games. But things have gone south ever since he arrived in Oil Country, with the 32-year-old registering a .886 save percentage in 41 games spread across the past two seasons. That’s the third-worst mark of any goaltender who’s played at least 30 games over that span. Campbell was re-assigned to the AHL in early November, and the odds of him returning to his original form are uncertain. With Leon Draisaitl eligible for an extension on July 1 — and the same for Connor McDavid a year later — the Oilers need every bit of cap space as they seek to prove to two of the world’s best that they can build a perennial contender in Edmonton. The Oilers would save $3.9 million next season [https://puckpedia.com/player/jack-campbell/buyout?s=2024-2025], $2.7 million in 2025-26 and $2.4 million in 2026-27. After that, it'll cost them $1.5 million for each of the three seasons afterward, but that wouldn't be very much if the salary cap continues to increase. KEVIN HAYES, C, ST. LOUIS BLUES $7,142,858 cap hit (50 percent retained by Philadelphia), signed through 2025-26 Things just haven’t worked out for Kevin Hayes in St. Louis. Fresh off recording a career-high 54 points with the Philadelphia Flyers last season, Hayes posted just 29 points this year, and he was a healthy scratch more than once in the final stretch of [https://www.stltoday.com/sports/professional/nhl/blues/blues-forward-kevin-hayes-a-healthy-scratch-again-as-regular-season-comes-to-a-close/article_562edbf6-f76b-11ee-bd45-1b1ae1fe9b7d.html]a season where his footspeed appeared to taper off. With the Flyers retaining half of his cap hit, Hayes’ cap hit isn’t egregious. However, the Blues would almost certainly have to retain another 50 percent of the deal and maybe even attach an asset to offload him. A buyout would save the Blues one of their two retention spots — which they’ll likely look to weaponize before next year's trade deadline. It’d only count against $2.24 million of the cap [https://puckpedia.com/player/kevin-hayes/buyout?s=2024-2025] for the next two years, which is $1,333,333 less than the original cap hit, followed by a mere $667,000 cap hit for the two seasons after that. TOREY KRUG, D, ST. LOUIS BLUES $6.5-million cap hit, signed through 2026-27 Speaking of the Blues, they have a pricey and underperforming blueline. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/st-louis-blues/latest-news/st-louis-blues-defenseman-could-be-a-buyout-candidate] St. Louis is slated to have 27 percent of its 2024-25 salary cap allocated toward Justin Faulk, Torey Krug and Colton Parayko — who each carry a $6.5-million cap hit — and Nick Leddy's $4-million cap hit. All four of those guys are over 30 years old, too. Krug seems to be the most redundant of the four. While he’s still a capable power-play quarterback, Krug’s mobility likely won't get better, and it’d be better if they invest in a young player at a lower cap hit. GM Doug Armstrong tried to move him to Philadelphia last summer, but Krug exercised his no-move clause [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/st-louis-blues/latest-news/krug-addresses-not-waiving-no-trade-clause-committed-to-being-solution-with-blues] and nixed the deal. Unless Armstrong can find a fit for Krug this time around — which wouldn’t be easy, given his cap hit — a buyout is the only option left. The Blues would save [https://puckpedia.com/player/torey-krug/buyout?s=2024-2025] $6,166,667 next season, $4,166,667 in 2025-26 and $3,66,667 in 2026-27. After that, the buyout would cost $2,333,333 for three seasons afterward. NATE SCHMIDT, D, WINNIPEG JETS $5.95 million, signed through 2024-25 It’s never ideal to have your second-highest-paid defenseman be a healthy scratch. But the Winnipeg Jets were forced to relegate Nate Schmidt to the press box several times this year, including for two of the team’s five playoff games. While his underlying numbers were sparkling this season, the 32-year-old's footspeed and overall effectiveness have declined. Given how the first-round series against the Colorado Avalanche went, there’s little doubt that Winnipeg’s blueline needs a makeover. GM Kevin Cheveldayoff will likely try to bring back one of Dylan DeMelo or Brenden Dillon — which won’t be cheap — but he ought to allocate cap space for a potential defenseman acquisition. That can’t be done without moving on from Schmidt. Buying out the last year of his contract [https://puckpedia.com/player/nate-schmidt/buyout?s=2024-2025] would save the Jets $3,233,333 next season and only cost about $1.6 million the year afterward. RYAN JOHANSEN, C, PHILADELPHIA FLYERS $8-million cap hit, signed through 2024-25 A parting of ways between Ryan Johansen and the Philadelphia Flyers seems inevitable. Acquired in the Sean Walker deal with the Colorado Avalanche before the trade deadline, Johansen never suited up for the Flyers. Philadelphia initially re-assigned him to the AHL’s Lehigh Valley Phantoms, but he never reported – citing an injury. News of an injury to Johansen — who had played in the days before the trade — was an eyebrow-raiser, and GM Daniel Briere confirmed to Philly Hockey Now [https://phillyhockeynow.com/2024/03/17/philadelphia-flyers-danny-briere-reveals-truth-about-ryan-johansen-injury/#google_vignette] that it caught the organization by surprise. [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers/latest-news/report-flyers-gm-clears-the-air-regarding-ryan-johansens-confusing-transactions] It doesn’t seem like Johansen is in Philadelphia’s plans. He was only acquired as a cap dump, anyway. Buying him out [https://puckpedia.com/player/ryan-johansen/buyout?s=2024-2025] would cost the Flyers a $1.33-million cap penalty for the next two seasons. In the grand scheme of things, it's a small price to pay, and they'd save $2,666,667 next season.
