NHL rumors: 3 possible destinations for Dustin Byfuglien

The Winnipeg Jets have terminated Dustin Byfuglien’s contract making him a free agent. According to the latest NHL rumors, these options could make sense for him.

Dustin Byfuglien and the Winnipeg Jets have parted ways after a confusing and abrupt end to their long-time relationship. The termination of the contract has made the big defenceman a free agent and being a right-shot makes him a very enticing player.

At 35 years old, he will want to join a contending team for his shot at his second-career Stanley Cup. With uncertainties with the cap due to the novel coronavirus as well as the fact that he has not played hockey in a year, teams will be hesitant to sign him to a long-term contract. Byfuglien is probably looking at one-year offers as teams want to see what he has left in his tank.

The falling out between the Jets and Byfuglien started with their disagreement on how to treat his ankle injury. Big Buf decided to get surgery and that cost him the 2019-20 season. However, with COVID-19 putting a pause on the NHL season, it gives Byfuglien time to heal from the wear and tear of 14 years of hockey.

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His style of play is extremely taxing on the body and I doubt he has played many games in his career fully healthy. This break in the season allows him time to rest his ankle, the rest of his body, as well as his mind. Here are three possible destinations for the big defenceman.

1. Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs have had a shortage of solid right-handed defencemen for years. They often put left-handed players on their off-side which definitely does not help their defensive issues. Morgan Rielly has been their top defenceman for years and his partners throughout his time with the Maple Leafs have been sub-par with names like Ron Hainsey and Cody Ceci.

The Leafs are a cap-strapped team but landing Byfuglien for a cheap one-year contract can be done. He’s a workhorse that can eat up a ton of minutes and help improve their mediocre penalty kill. His big body will help add some sandpaper to their lineup and having both him and Jake Muzzin on the team completely changes the Leafs’ image of being a small, pushover team.

2. Boston Bruins

With Torey Krug’s future with the Bruins uncertain, the addition of Byfuglien would be quite the replacement. The defenceman fits perfectly into the Bruins’ style of play and having both Zdeno Chara and Big Buf on the same team would be a nightmare for the rest of the league. Byfuglien’s a workhorse and averaged 24:31 minutes of ice time in his 8 years with the Jets.

With Chara being 43, Byfuglien would be a good player to help ease his workload while also taking over for Krug (if the Bruins don’t keep him). Having both Chara and Byfuglien on cheap, short contracts will give the Bruins some more cap room to make other moves to improve their team.

3. Retirement

Not much is known about Byfuglien and his struggles in the 2019-20 season but it has become evident that hockey is no longer a priority for the defenceman. When Kris Versteeg was on Sportsnet 590 the Fan, he said that he would be shocked if Byfuglien returned to hockey. The fact that he turned down 14 million dollars to terminate the contract speaks volumes of what he thinks about the sport and his future with it.

His style of play was not sustainable, especially as he got older and injuries became a big problem for the defenceman. At 35 years old, he has had an illustrious career and has made his money. There are bigger things than hockey and perhaps Byfuglien is trying to turn a corner in his life.