Frank Seravalli names nine potential buyout candidates this summer

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Cooper Godin
June 14, 2024 (6:11 PM)

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Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff has named nine potential buyout candidates this summer including a pair of players who just signed with their respective teams last year.

With Florida's win over the Edmonton Oilers in Game 3 on Thursday night, pushing them to the brink of their first-ever Stanley Cup, it pushed the buyout window closer than expected. The NHL's buyout window officially opens 48 hours after the Stanley Cup Final ends, which means if Florida finish the job on Saturday, it'll be open as of Monday.

On Friday, Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff shared nine players around the National Hockey League who could be bought out once the window opens and the biggest name on his list is Pierre-Luc Dubois.

Dubois was traded to the Los Angeles Kings last year and subsequently signed an eight-year extension with the team worth $8.5 million per season. His first season in Los Angeles didn't go as the team was hoping as he only put up 40 points in 82 games and one goal in five games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The 25-year-old's potential buyout would be tricky if it's not completed until after June 24th. Given that Dubois is only 25, his buyout would only cost the Kings 1/3 of his contract whereas after his birthday on June 24th, it would cost 2/4. Seravalli noted that buying out Dubois contract would last for 14 years and with the money owing varying between $1.1 and $3.8 million.

"Yes, we heard GM Rob Blake say at locker cleanout day that the Kings were not planning on buying out Dubois. But this makes too much sense. At least until June 24, it does. That's when Dubois turns 26. For now, he is 25, and that means the Kings are only responsible for paying one-third of the money remaining on his deal, instead of two-thirds which happens when he celebrates his 26th birthday. If the Cup Final goes to Game 7, then it won't be possible. And of course, a 14-year buyout sounds painful now, but the majority of the cap hits are negligible at a time when the cap will be well exceeding $100 million per year. The Kings would save $32 million in real cash � which is a serious amount of dough. It's better to admit a mistake and pay a lesser price rather than double down and have it hurt much worse in the long-term." Seravalli said.

The other eight names on Servalli's list are - Jack Campbell (Edmonton Oilers), Barclay Goodrow (New York Rangers), Joonas Korpisalo (Ottawa Senators), Jean-Gabriel Pageau (New York Islanders), Torey Krug (St. Louis Blues), Cal Petersen (Philadelphia Flyers), Cam Atkinson (Philadelphia Flyers) and Ryan Suter (Dallas Stars).

It'll be interesting to see how many, if any, players are bought out once the NHL's window opens. But it could be pretty busy given some of the names suggested by Frank Seravalli, with Dubois seeming like a strong candidate to have his contract bought out.

POLL
Which player do you think is most likely to be bought out?
Pierre-Luc Dubois	110	27 %
Joonas Korpisalo	27	6.6 %
Jack Campbell	247	60.5 %
Barclay Goodrow	24	5.9 %
List of polls