The NHL's first buyout window is currently open and will remain so until July 27 at 5:00 p.m. ET, the day before free agency. How much of a buyout charge a team gets depends on the player's age.
If a player younger than 26 is bought out, the buyout amount will be one-third of the remaining contract value, but if they are 26 or older the buyout amount will be two-thirds of the remaining value.
Per CapFriendly, here is how a buyout can be calculated:
1. Multiply the remaining salary (excluding signing bonuses) by the buyout amount (as determined by age) to obtain the total buyout cost
2. Spread the total buyout cost evenly over twice the remaining contract years
3. Determine the savings by subtracting the annual buyout cost from Step 2 by the player's salary (excluding signing bonuses)
4. Determine the remaining cap hit by subtracting the savings from Step 3 by the player's Annual Average Salary (AAV), including signing bonuses
In August, there will be a second buyout window opportunity for teams that have at least one player arbitration filing.
The Seattle expansion draft is expected to have an impact on this year's buyout market, which could be a bit busier than usual. Here you'll find the latest players who have been bought out, including the details of why and what the remaining cap impact is on their former teams.
James Neal, Edmonton Oilers
Contract status at time of buyout: $5.75 million, two years remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $11.5 million
Notes: The goal scoring has all but vanished from Neal's game, scoring just five times this past season. He's become a bit more of a defensive player, but not close to playing up to his cap hit anymore. This was the benefit of the Lucic-Neal swap for Edmonton -- the could buyout Neal's contract to gain flexibility, something that's not really an option with Lucic's deal.
Braden Holtby, Vancouver Canucks
Contract status at time of buyout: $4.3 million, one year remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $5.7 million
Notes: Signed as an insurance policy for young netminder Thatcher Demko last off-season, Holtby never got going in Vancouver and when Demko solidified his spot as the 1A with strong play, Holtby became someone to move on from. Buying out Holtby gave the Canucks a little more cap space for the coming season, something most of their recent transactions have tried to accomplish.
Martin Jones, San Jose Sharks
Contract status at time of buyout: $5.75 million, three years remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $15 million
Notes: San Joses goaltending has been a real problem for a few years now and changing it up was a priority. Jones has had a sub-.900 save percentage three years in a row now.
Jake Virtanen, Vancouver Canucks
Contract status at time of buyout: $2.55 million AAV, one year remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $3.4 million
Notes: The sixth overall pick in the 2014 draft, Virtanen had a career-best 18-goal season a year ago followed by a five-goal campaign in 38 games this season. As the Canucks seek cap room to help them push back for the playoffs, Virtanen became an easy choice. As he hits unrestricted free agency, the 24-year-old is also facing sexual assault allegations that are currently being investigated.
Tony DeAngelo, New York Rangers
Contract status at time of buyout: $4.8 million million cap hit, one year remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $5.3 million
Notes: DeAngelo was sent home by the Rangers following an overtime loss to Pittsburgh in January. Reports indicated DeAngelo had a physical altercation with goalie Alexandar Georgiev after the loss. DeAngelo was later put on waivers, went unclaimed, and didn't play another game anywhere all season. DeAngelo has had a few troublesome off-ice incidents in his NHL and pre-NHL career, including being suspended as a junior hockey player for directing a slur at a teammate. He's 25 years old and it's believed some teams will have interest, but there's a lot of baggage here.
Keith Yandle, Florida Panthers
Contract status at time of buyout: $6.35 million million cap hit, two years remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $10.5 million
Notes: The Panthers find a way to move on from Yandle's $6.35 million cap hit, saving $4 million this upcoming season, but considerably less in 2022-23. In 56 games this season, Yandle had three goals and 27 points with a minus-eight rating. Yandle has played 922 consecutive NHL games, which is just 42 shy of tying Doug Jarvis' all-time record.
Zach Parise, Minnesota Wild
Contract status at time of buyout: $7.538 million cap hit, four years remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $10 million
Notes: On July 4, 2012 Parise signed a massive 13-year, $98 million contract with the Wild that brought the native son home from New Jersey. Parise was 27 at the time, in the prime of his career, and coming off a 31-goal, 69-point season. In nine seasons with the Wild, Parise served a leading role, was an assistant captain and had some solid seasons early on. After going through a bit of decline in the middle of the last decade, Parise recovered with a 28-goal 2018-19. In 2020-21, Parise became a replaceable player and was made a healthy scratch at times down the stretch and even in the playoffs.
Ryan Suter, Minnesota Wild
Contract status at time of buyout: $7.538 million cap hit, four years remaining
Actual salary still owed at time of buyout: $10 million
Notes: Suter signed the same contract as Parise on the same day as a UFA nine years ago and it was to usher in a new, competitive era in Wild hockey. That era is now over with two playoff series wins to show for. At Suter's peak he was a defencemen with one of the NHL's heaviest workloads, entrusted with massive ice time and one of the best defensive players at the position. Now a free agent, he could still be a massive piece of someone's blue line at 36 years old, and it will be manageable at a lesser cap hit.
What buying out both Parise and Suter does is save $10.33 million in cap space for the coming season and also open up two extra protection slots ahead of the Seattle expansion draft. Matt Dumba will no longer be a question mark and can be protected from the Kraken.
But there's a downside to this, too. The Wild will only save $2.33 million next season, and then just over $300,000 in savings the two seasons after that. In 2023-24 and 2024-25, Minnesota will have $14.72 million in dead cap space, effectively capping their spending at $66.758 million against an $81.5 million salary cap. They'll be able to protect just about everyone they'd like from Seattle, but with Kirill Kaprizov and Kevin Fiala needing extensions right now, and Dumba and Jordan Greenway needing new contracts next off-season, the long-term cap outlook is murky now.
Wild 7-3-1 protection list will likely be now with 2 spots opened:
Zuccarello, Fiala, Eriksson Ek, Foligno, Hartman, Greenway, STURM, Spurgeon, Brodin, DUMBA, Talbot
Exposed: Rask, Soucy, Kahkonen, Menell + minor leaguers and UFA's (just a guess)— Michael Russo (@RussoHockey) July 13, 2021
