This Lightning winger is considered one of the NHL's top buyout candidates for this offseason.

The Tampa Bay Lightning have some big decisions to make by July 1. With the club only having just over $5 million of cap space and needing to re-sign Steven Stamkos, some roster moves are expected to be on the way. 

Due to this, in a recent article for The Athletic, Thomas Drance and Harman Dayal listed Lightning forward Conor Sheary as the first name on their buyout candidates board. 

A Sheary buyout would drop his $2 million cap hit to $583,333 for the 2024-25 season, benefiting the Lightning's cap situation this summer.  From there, the buyout would hit its highest value at $1,083,333 for 2025-26 before going back down to $583,333 for the last two seasons. 

It would not be surprising if the Lightning looked to move on from Sheary this offseason, whether through a trade or buyout. The Massachusetts native was brought in with the expectation of being a key middle-six forward for the Lightning. However, he struggled to find his fit during his first year in Tampa.

Sheary's offense notably dipped this campaign. In 57 games, he had four goals, 11 assists, and a minus-3 rating. This was after he posted 37-point and 43-point campaigns for the Washington Capitals in the two previous seasons. He also fell dramatically on the Lightning's depth chart due to his struggles. He not only was scratched multiple times during the regular season but also did not touch the ice once during the playoffs. 

It will be intriguing to see what the Lightning do with Sheary this summer. His full no-trade clause changed to a 16-team trade list on June 15, so the Lightning now have some flexibility to trade him. His $2 million cap hit is not outrageous, but some clubs may stay away because his deal does not expire until 2025-26. Thus, the buyout route seems quite possible.  

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