{"id":2184,"date":"2025-06-21T11:12:11","date_gmt":"2025-06-21T11:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/2184\/"},"modified":"2025-06-21T11:12:11","modified_gmt":"2025-06-21T11:12:11","slug":"why-these-9-overpriced-nhl-contracts-could-get-traded-this-offseason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/2184\/","title":{"rendered":"Why these 9 overpriced NHL contracts could get traded this offseason"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every offseason, some teams are motivated to clear salary off their books and\/or give one or two players a fresh start.<\/p>\n

It should be easier for teams to trade risky contracts compared to years past because of the NHL\u2019s skyrocketing salary cap. In fact, we\u2019ve already seen two inefficient contracts, Chris Kreider and Erik Haula, traded for positive value returns.<\/p>\n

We covered a big chunk of names that could be shopped with our buyout candidates<\/a> list from this week, which included Matt Dumba, Pierre Engvall, Justin Holl, Mattias Samuelsson, Viktor Arvidsson, TJ Brodie, Mathieu Joseph, Philipp Grubauer and David K\u00e4mpf. Teams will scour the trade market for exit options on these types of players before considering the buyout route. Chris Johnston\u2019s trade board<\/a> highlighted some other expensive contracts that could get traded, including Erik Karlsson, John Gibson and Elvis Merzlikins.<\/p>\n

But there are more players on overpriced deals \u2014 closer to being a \u201cslight overpay\u201d than on an \u201calbatross\/anchor\u201d of a contract \u2014 that teams could consider jettisoning this offseason. Here are nine to keep an eye on. Note that the contracts on this list aren\u2019t equal; some of them are actually close to being fair value, whereas others are far more toxic.<\/p>\n

Matias Maccelli, Utah Mammoth<\/p>\n

Matias Maccelli appeared to be a key part of Utah\u2019s exciting young core before the start of this season. He amassed 49 points in 64 games (a 63-point pace over 82 games) as a 22-year-old rookie in 2022-23 and followed that up with 57 points as a sophomore in 2023-24. If anything, his $3.425 million cap hit profiled as a bargain.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, Maccelli\u2019s production collapsed, and he completely fell out of favor this past season. Maccelli slumped to just 18 points in 55 games and was a regular healthy scratch, appearing in only three of Utah\u2019s games after the 4 Nations break. He\u2019s a very crafty, slick playmaker, but he\u2019s undersized at 5-foot-11, can be a mixed bag defensively, and isn\u2019t a strong forechecker.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to envision an optimal fit for him in Utah, with both sides likely to benefit from a fresh start. Maccelli only has one year left at his $3.425 million cap hit \u2014 he could be a high-upside reclamation project for a team searching for a middle-six playmaking winger.<\/p>\n

Small wingers without an elite skill set usually aren\u2019t rated very highly on the trade market. However, with so many teams boasting excess cap space and not enough good players to go around on the free-agent and trade market, there\u2019s probably at least one team, if not more, that would bet on Maccelli.<\/p>\n

Ondrej Palat, New Jersey Devils<\/p>\n

The Devils have an exciting, young core, but there are plenty of upgrades that need to be made to elevate the club to true contender status.<\/p>\n

New Jersey scored only 2.57 goals per game from Jan. 1 onward, which ranked 30th in the NHL, and mustered just 11 goals in five playoff games against the Hurricanes. Jack Hughes\u2019 injury was obviously a significant factor behind the Devils\u2019 offensive woes, but adding more dynamic forward skill around Hughes, Jesper Bratt and Nico Hischier should be a massive priority. Ideally, this wouldn\u2019t involve adding just one top-six winger this offseason, but rather adding several pieces to revamp the club\u2019s secondary scoring support up and down the lineup.<\/p>\n

Ondrej Palat is an inefficient contract that the Devils should try shipping out to fund some of those upgrades. Palat, 34, scored just 15 goals and 28 points despite playing on Hughes\u2019 line for most of the season. He has two years left at a $6 million cap hit, and on July 1, his no-movement clause will transition to a 10-team no-trade list.<\/p>\n

This won\u2019t be an easy contract to move, but Palat would still be a valuable third-line contributor, not to mention that his championship pedigree and exceptional leadership could be coveted by younger teams with excess cap space to spend. It also helps that Palat will only be owed $3.95 million in salary for next season after New Jersey pays his signing bonus on July 1. In other words, the real cash owed to him is lower than his cap hit, which can be appealing for teams and owners. If the Devils are willing to retain a bit of Palat\u2019s cap hit and\/or pay a sweetener, they could conceivably find a suitor.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Evander Kane\u2019s contract has one year remaining at $5.125 million. (Jerome Miron \/ Imagn Images)Evander Kane, Edmonton Oilers<\/p>\n

You could argue that Evander Kane\u2019s contract, which has one year remaining at $5.125 million, is closer to fair value than overpriced in this rising cap climate. He was productive in the playoffs, despite a disappointing Stanley Cup Final performance, scoring 12 points in 21 games. In the 2023-24 season, which was his last appearance in the regular season, he scored 24 goals. With that said, there is still some risk associated with his deal.<\/p>\n

Kane turns 34 this summer and missed the entire regular season to repair both hip adductors, two lower abdominal tears, and two hernias. He looked healthy in the playoffs when he returned, but it\u2019s fair to have concerns about how his body will hold up over the grind of a full regular season and playoffs next year. And even if Kane does stay healthy, his lack of foot speed, lack of play-driving ability, penchant for undisciplined penalties, and so-so defensive play mean that he ideally wouldn\u2019t be a full-time top-six winger for a contending team such as the Oilers.<\/p>\n

With all of those question marks in mind, trading Kane would be one of the most straightforward ways for the cap-strapped Oilers to open up some money, with Evan Bouchard\u2019s massive next contract looming. Kane only has partial trade protection (a 16-team trade list), so his contract would be easier to move than Viktor Arvidsson\u2019s or Adam Henrique\u2019s, who both own full no-movement clauses.<\/p>\n

Ilya Lyubushkin, Dallas Stars<\/p>\n

Ilya Lyubushkin was competent for the Stars this past season \u2014 he was nowhere near the liability that Matt Dumba was \u2014 but his $3.25 million cap hit is a tad pricey for what he offers. Lyubushkin is a steady stay-at-home defenseman with limited puck skills. He\u2019d be solid on any team\u2019s bottom pair, but clearly isn\u2019t the answer for the Stars in the top four.<\/p>\n

Dallas is mired in a salary cap crunch, even after trading Mason Marchment away. The Stars have approximately $5 million in cap space with only 16 players signed (eight forwards, six defensemen, two goaltenders). Offloading Dumba\u2019s contract, either via trade or buyout, is a necessity, but the club may need cap flexibility beyond that.<\/p>\n

Lyubushkin has two years left on his $3.25 million AAV contract and no trade protection. Teams almost always value right-shot defenders with size and penalty-killing value, so it shouldn\u2019t be too difficult to find a taker for Lyubushkin if the Stars go down that path.<\/p>\n

Miles Wood, Colorado Avalanche<\/p>\n

After re-signing Brock Nelson to a three-year, $7.5 million annual average value contract extension, the Avalanche are in a bit of a cap crunch.<\/p>\n

Colorado has only $1.2 million in cap space, with 19 players signed for next season, including just five defensemen under contract. There is currently no room to retain Ryan Lindgren (or replace him with a similar quality defenseman) or Jonathan Drouin, who are pending unrestricted free agents. Sam Malinski, a solid third-pair defenseman with upside, also needs a new deal as a restricted free agent.<\/p>\n

The Avs aren\u2019t in a dire cap situation, but the club would benefit enormously from carving out some extra flexibility, especially to upgrade their thin blue line. Colorado has a few contracts it could shop to improve its cap picture, with Miles Wood standing out as one candidate.<\/p>\n

At his best, Wood is an impactful, straight-line bottom-six winger with tremendous speed, punishing physicality and secondary scoring ability. However, between his health and streakiness, he\u2019s proven to be an inconsistent player over the last few seasons. Wood had a down year, scoring just eight points in 37 games in an injury-plagued 2024-25 campaign. He no longer seems like an indispensable part of the Avs lineup, and there\u2019s an argument to be made that his $2.5 million cap hit should be reallocated elsewhere.<\/p>\n

Teams may view Wood\u2019s $2.5 million AAV as somewhat reasonable in a rising-cap climate where teams have money to burn, especially since this year\u2019s free-agent market is relatively weak. After all, it was only a year ago, in 2023-24, that Wood was solidly contributing at a third-line level. The tougher pill to swallow, however, would be the four years of term remaining on his contract. Still, his combination of speed and size is unique enough that another team may be willing to roll the dice on him.<\/p>\n

Vladimir Tarasenko, Detroit Red Wings<\/p>\n

You can add Vladimir Tarasenko\u2019s name to the list of middle-class free-agent signings that haven\u2019t panned out in Detroit. The 33-year-old veteran sniper produced just 11 goals in 80 games in Motown after scoring 23 goals and 55 points split between the Senators and Panthers in 2023-24. That production fall-off was especially costly because Tarasenko doesn\u2019t contribute much else when he isn\u2019t scoring.<\/p>\n

Tarasenko has one year left at a $4.75 million cap hit, with his no-trade clause transitioning to an eight-team trade list on July 1. It\u2019s very unlikely that a team would be willing to absorb the full freight of Tarasenko\u2019s $4.75 million AAV (unless the Red Wings paid a sweetener like they did with Jake Walman last summer). However, if Detroit were willing to retain, say, 50 percent of his contract, it\u2019d bring his cap hit down to just under $2.4 million, at which point he may be movable.<\/p>\n

Carson Soucy, New York Rangers<\/p>\n

The Rangers opened up some critical cap room by trading Chris Kreider to the Anaheim Ducks, but they may not be done there.<\/p>\n

New York has approximately $13.9 million in cap space with 19 players (12 forwards, five defensemen, two goaltenders) signed. That\u2019s enough space to re-sign restricted free agent Will Cuylle and either extend RFA K\u2019Andre Miller<\/a> or sign a top-four replacement in the event Miller is traded. However, there wouldn\u2019t be much flexibility left over to significantly upgrade a roster that missed the playoffs.<\/p>\n

If GM Chris Drury has his eyes set on making an aggressive splash or two, he may need to move out another contract first. Carson Soucy, who has one year remaining at a $3.25 million cap hit, could make sense as a cap casualty.<\/p>\n

Soucy was acquired from the Canucks just before the trade deadline and filled the spot vacated by departing Ryan Lindgren on the top pair as Adam Fox\u2019s partner. You could understand the thought process behind acquiring Soucy at the time \u2014 he was a rock-solid top-four defender for Vancouver in 2023-24 before struggling this past season \u2014 and he could theoretically check some of the boxes Lindgren provided as a steady stay-at-home presence (at least before Lindgren\u2019s game began declining).<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, the change of scenery didn\u2019t help Soucy recapture his top form. His season-long struggles continued, and he was even occasionally healthy-scratched down the stretch. Soucy doesn\u2019t appear to be a top-four solution in New York, which means the $3.25 million committed to him is a figure that the Rangers could seek to reallocate more efficiently.<\/p>\n

Nick Leddy, St. Louis Blues<\/p>\n

After years of searching for answers, the Blues are finally set on the left side of their top-four defense. Philip Broberg cemented himself as a core piece with his terrific breakout campaign, while veteran Cam Fowler was a home-run fit on the top pair with Colton Parayko. With those two set to return, and 25-year-old left-shot Tyler Tucker potentially ready for full-time NHL duties, Nick Leddy is expendable.<\/p>\n

Leddy is still a smooth skater with capable puck-moving chops, but that skill set is redundant since the arrival of Fowler and Broberg. He only has one year left at a $4 million cap hit, and his no-trade clause will transition to a 16-team trade list on July 1. Leddy missed more than half the season due to a lower-body injury, so health and age could be concerns for prospective buyers. On the other hand, he has tons of experience munching difficult top-four minutes and considering how shallow the defense market is, it wouldn\u2019t be surprising if a team wants to roll the dice on Leddy for a year to play as a No. 4\/5 defender at a $4 million AAV that\u2019s only slightly overpriced.<\/p>\n

Andre Burakovsky, Seattle Kraken<\/p>\n

The Kraken have a forward logjam developing.<\/p>\n

Jared McCann, Jaden Schwartz, Kaapo Kakko (assuming he\u2019s re-signed as a restricted free agent), Jordan Eberle and Mason Marchment can all be penciled into top-nine roles. That only leaves one top-nine winger spot available, with Eeli Tolvanen (23 goals) and hotshot prospect Jani Nyman likely contending for that role. Berkly Catton, Seattle\u2019s No. 8 pick from 2024, could also be NHL-ready in the fall. Catton is only 5-foot-10, so there\u2019s a chance the Kraken could shift him to the wing to ease his big-league transition.<\/p>\n

There may not be much opportunity left over for Andre Burakovsky, who has underwhelmed since signing with the Kraken in 2022. Burakovsky scored just 16 points in 49 games in an injury-riddled 2023-24 campaign and only 37 points in 79 games this past season. He has two years left at a steep $5.5 million cap hit and owns a 10-team no-trade list.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s highly unlikely that any team would take the full freight of Burakovsky\u2019s contract on (unless Seattle paid heavy sweeteners), but perhaps there would be a taker for him if the Kraken are willing to retain a significant chunk of his deal.<\/p>\n

(Illustration: Demetrius Robinson \/ The Athletic; Jonathan Kozub \/ NHLI, Bruce Bennett \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Every offseason, some teams are motivated to clear salary off their books and\/or give one or two players…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":2185,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[42],"tags":[2995,1320,2993,2997,3000,2994,1302,293,2999,62,2996,67,132,68,2998],"class_list":{"0":"post-2184","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nhl","8":"tag-colorado-avalanche","9":"tag-dallas-stars","10":"tag-detroit-red-wings","11":"tag-edmonton-oilers","12":"tag-fantasy-hockey","13":"tag-new-jersey-devils","14":"tag-new-york-rangers","15":"tag-nhl","16":"tag-seattle-kraken","17":"tag-sports","18":"tag-st-louis-blues","19":"tag-united-states","20":"tag-unitedstates","21":"tag-us","22":"tag-utah-hockey-club"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114721059373662232","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2184"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2184\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}