NHL Free Agency: Top 5 buyout candidates

Henrik Lundqvist

Henrik Lundqvist‘s days with the New York Rangers appear to be over. Igor Shesterkin has taken over his throne as the king of the Rangers’ goal, as he appears to be his heir apparent. According to Lohud, a buyout isn’t just possible. At this point, it’s trending towards probable.

The Rangers will likely try to trade Lundqvist, but his no-movement clause is going to complicate things. Maybe he wants to go to a specific team, but they can’t fit him in cap wise. Even if the Rangers retain 50% of his cap hit, $4.25 million is still a bit pricey for Lundqvist at this point. Especially with the flat salary cap ceiling.

Another factor is the Rangers also have Alexandar Georgiev, who seems ready to be a full-time NHL backup. He has posted similar numbers to Lundqvist over the past three years and likely won’t be as expensive.

A buyout would save the Rangers $3 million this season and cost the Rangers $1.5 million next season. You can assume that $3 million would be going to Georgiev, so buying him out doesn’t impact the Rangers cap space situation for next season.

Possible suitors: Lundqvist has spent his whole career with the Rangers, so if they buy him out, maybe he’ll just retire. But if he wants to play and is willing to take a substantial pay cut, teams like the Washington Capitals and Calgary Flames who are looking for veteran goaltenders might come calling.