The Columbus Blue Jackets have a long streak of not going to arbitration with any RFA's, and it continued this year by signing Jet Greaves and Cole Sillinger just before their scheduled hearings.
Now, per CBA rules, they have 48 hours to buy out any players by putting them on outright waivers. The rule kicks in 72 hours after their final arbitration hearing, or, in this case, by signing Cole Sillinger and avoiding a hearing. The window will close on Thursday.
So what does this mean for the Columbus Blue Jackets? Probably nothing.
Many fans will want to see GM Don Waddell buy out goalie Elvis Merzlikins, but I'm here to tell you that's most likely not going to happen.
Why you ask? Because the CBJ simply don't need to.
Merzlikins is entering the final year of a 5-year deal signed in 2021, which will pay him $5.4 million. He does have a modified 10-team no-trade list as well. Buying him out would mean the CBJ would need to pay him $1.4 million for the next two years, at a cap hit of $2.58 million.
Waddell would most likely want to keep the known commodity until at least he can find a trade partner, if that's the route he would want to go. Surely someone would want to finally take Merzlikins off Waddell's hands.
Of course, Waddell could throw us all a curveball and buy Elvis out, which would be a shocker, honestly. That would then mean he would need to fill a hole in Cleveland, though, too. They are going to want some experience in Cleveland to go along with Gardner and Lalonde.
Stay tuned.
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