Buy-Out Window Is Now Open

The Stanley Cup Champion has been crowned and now the business of hockey around the NHL can resume.  Teams are free at this time to make roster moves and some clubs have already started the process.

The Minnesota Wild started things by announcing that they will be buying out the final year of Matt Cooke's contract.  Also, the San Jose Sharks put Adam Burish on waivers with the same intent.

Who's next?

The Carolina Hurricanes have made no secret about their unhappiness with high-priced forward Alexander Semin.  Will they go so far as to buy him out?

When recently asked about it, (reported from various sources), Ron Francis gave the same stock answer he gave at the end-of-season press conference.  (They will be weighing all options and a buy-out is one of them.)  Since he didn't say that a buy-out was off the table we would have to assume that there is a possibility for that to happen.

If they do go this way, it will not be the cheap way out.  Semin is owed $21 million over three years and would get two-thirds of that in a buy-out, $14 million to be paid over six years.

Obviously, the preferred way to go would be to trade him, (even if they retain up to 50% of his salary, the maximum allowed), but they don't seem to have any takers on that front, yet.

Francis and company will probably wait until the draft and try to do some wheeling and dealing there, they do have 10 draft picks at their disposal for such.  But if there are no takers at the draft then they will have to make a "buy-out" related decision soon.

According to the CBA rules, they have until June 30th, to complete that process.  (There are some arbitration exceptions that don't fit here.)  That way, the player could hit the market as a free agent on July 1.

Will the Hurricanes buy him out?  Should they?

We ran a poll here back in April where 19% of you said to buy him out.  About 25% responded to make some type of trade and 44% prefer that he return again next season, (out of almost 700 respondents).

Interesting days are ahead Caniacs.

I will have my annual mock draft posted on Monday or Tuesday along with who I picked and how I did in previous years.