Compliance buyout

Compliance buyouts (sometimes referred to as amnesty buyouts) allow National Hockey League (NHL) teams to buy-out a player's contract by paying him two-thirds of the remaining value of a contract over twice the remaining length of the contract. If the player is under 26 years old, then the team may pay the player just one-third of the remaining contract value.[1] In ordinary-course buyouts, the team's NHL salary cap hit for the player is stretched over a period of twice the remaining length of the contract. Compliance buyouts follow the same formula as ordinary-course buyouts but do not count against the cap.

The most expensive NHL compliance buyouts. Clockwise from upper left: Vincent Lecavalier, Rick DiPietro, Ilya Bryzgalov and Brad Richards.

Due to the 2012–13 NHL lockout, the salary cap was not to increase to the projected $70.2 million, so each team was therefore granted two compliance buyouts to be exercised after the 2012–13 season and/or after the 2013–14 season that would not count against the salary cap in any further year in order to better comply with a lower than expected cap value, regardless of the player's age. After using a compliance buyout on a player, that player is prohibited from rejoining the team that bought him out for one year; the NHL deemed that the re-signing of a player following a trade and a subsequent compliance buyout would be ruled as cap circumvention.[2]

Following the 2012–13 NHL lockout each team was granted one accelerated compliance buyout in order for teams to meet the lowered salary cap. This could be used on a player with a salary cap hit of US$3 million or more before the regular season began. If an accelerated compliance buyout is used, that team will only have one more compliance buyout left, and they must use it after the completion of the 2012–13 season (and before the start of 2013–14 season). The player's cap hit is applied in full to the team's salary cap for the 2012–13 season, but for no season after, regardless of contract length.

Available during the off-season in 2013 and 2014, amnesty buyouts begin 48 hours after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals.

In 2013, it began 48 hours after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup, and ended on July 4, 2013. The second NHL compliance buyout period opened on June 16, 2014, and ran through June 30, 2014, with 26 teams having one or more compliance buyout available to be used.[3]

There was also a period for unlimited compliance buyouts following the 2004–05 NHL lockout from July 23–29, 2005.[4] Only nine teams opted to take advantage of this period, buying out a total of 13 players, and only three teams bought out more than one player. The players: Chris Gratton (Colorado), Andrew Cassels and Scott Lachance (Columbus), Pierre Turgeon (Dallas), Derian Hatcher, Darren McCarty, and Ray Whitney (Detroit), Mathieu Biron (Florida), Matt Johnson (Minnesota), Bobby Holik (NY Rangers), Tony Amonte and John LeClair (Philadelphia), and Brian Savage (Phoenix).[5] Due to a contract dispute between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Owen Nolan, Toronto arranged with the league to utilize a compliance buyout on Nolan if it was ruled he had the right to exercise a contract option for the 2005–06 season.[5][6]

Combining the 2005 and 2013–2014 compliance buyout periods, 21 teams bought out at least one player. The Detroit Red Wings have bought out the most players (5), while the Philadelphia Flyers (4) and New York Rangers (3) are the only other teams with more than two. Nine franchises (eleven if the Seattle Kraken and Vegas Golden Knights are included) have never used a compliance buyout. They are the Anaheim Ducks, Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Los Angeles Kings, Nashville Predators, Ottawa Senators, Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues, and Winnipeg Jets (formerly the Atlanta Thrashers).

List of compliance buyouts

The following is an unofficial list of all the compliance buyouts that have been used:[7][8]

Team Player Date Length Amount Ref
Buffalo Sabres Ville Leino June 18, 2014 6 years $7,333,333 [9]
Christian Ehrhoff June 29, 2014 14 years $12,000,000 [10]
Calgary Flames Shane O'Brien June 30, 2014 2 years $1,466,667 [11]
Chicago Blackhawks Steve Montador June 27, 2013 4 years $2,733,333 [12]
Rostislav Olesz June 27, 2013 2 years $2,833,333 [13]
Dallas Stars Aaron Rome June 17, 2014 2 years $1,066,667 [14]
Detroit Red Wings Carlo Colaiacovo July 3, 2013 2 years $1,900,000 [15]
Jordin Tootoo June 18, 2014 2 years $1,333,333 [16]
Edmonton Oilers Eric Belanger July 4, 2013 2 years $833,333 [17]
Florida Panthers Ed Jovanovski June 30, 2014 2 years $2,666,667 [18]
Minnesota Wild Tom Gilbert July 3, 2013 2 years $2,000,000 [19]
Montreal Canadiens Scott Gomez1 January 15, 2013 3 years $3,000,000 [20]
Tomas Kaberle June 28, 2013 2 years $3,000,000 [21]
New Jersey Devils Johan Hedberg July 4, 2013 2 years $933,333 [22]
Anton Volchenkov June 30, 2014 4 years $5,666,667 [11]
New York Islanders Rick DiPietro July 3, 2013 16 years $24,000,000 [23]
New York Rangers Wade Redden1 January 17, 2013 3 years $3,333,333 [24]
Brad Richards June 20, 2014 12 years $20,666,667 [25]
Philadelphia Flyers Daniel Briere June 26, 2013 4 years $3,333,333 [26]
Ilya Bryzgalov June 26, 2013 14 years $23,000,000 [27]
San Jose Sharks Martin Havlat June 27, 2014 2 years $4,000,000 [28]
Tampa Bay Lightning Vincent Lecavalier June 27, 2013 14 years $32,666,667 [29]
Ryan Malone June 25, 2014 2 years $1,666,667 [30]
Toronto Maple Leafs Mike Komisarek July 2, 2013 2 years $2,333,333 [31]
Mikhail Grabovski July 4, 2013 8 years $14,333,333 [32]
Vancouver Canucks Keith Ballard July 3, 2013 4 years $5,600,000 [33]
David Booth June 17, 2014 2 years $3,166,667 [34]
Washington Capitals Jeff Schultz July 3, 2013 2 years $2,000,000 [35]
Notes
  1. Accelerated compliance buyout

References
  1. "NHL's compliance buyout explained".
  2. Brooks, Larry (June 26, 2013). "NHL trips up buyouts". New York Post.
  3. "Compliance buyout period opens on Monday". USA Today. June 15, 2014.
  4. "CBA Ratified by NHL Board of Governors". www.nhl.com. July 22, 2005. Retrieved July 17, 2022. COMPLIANCE BUYOUTS -- Clubs may buy out player contracts at no charge toward the Club's Upper Limit from July 23, 2005 to July 29, 2005 at 5 p.m., ET. A player who is bought out may not rejoin his old club during the 2005-06 season.
  5. "Buyouts Not The Norm". NHL.com. July 29, 2005. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  6. "Report: NHLPA files grievance on Nolan's contract". ESPN.com. September 16, 2005. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
  7. "2012-13 Compliance Buyout List". TSN. Archived from the original on 1 September 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  8. Fox, Luke (1 July 2014). "NHL Buyout Tracker: How all teams used them". Sportsnet.ca. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  9. "Sabres buy out Leino contract: report". NHL.com.
  10. "Sabres buy out remaining seven years of Ehrhoff's contract". TSN. 29 June 2014. Archived from the original on 7 August 2014. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  11. "Blueliners O'Brien, Gleason and Volchenkov put on waivers". Archived from the original on 2014-08-13. Retrieved 2017-12-09.
  12. "Blackhawks to buy out Montador, Olesz". ESPN.com. 27 June 2013.
  13. "Blackhawks to use buyouts on Montador, Olesz". NHL.com.
  14. "Stars use compliance buyout on defenseman Rome". NHL.com.
  15. St. James, Helene (July 3, 2013). "Red Wings to buy out Carlo Colaiacovo". USA Today.
  16. Roose, Bill (June 18, 2014). "Red Wings place Tootoo on waivers". NHL.com. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  17. "Oilers Waive Eric Belanger, Will Use Compliance Buyout". 4 July 2013.
  18. "Florida Panthers Exercise Compliance Buyout on D Ed Jovanovski". NHL.com.
  19. "Minnesota To Use Compliance Buy-Out On Gilbert". NHL.com.
  20. "NHL compliance buyout rules altered". 2013-01-15.
  21. "Canadiens use compliance buyout on Tomas Kaberle". NHL.com.
  22. "Report: Devils to use buyout on goalie Hedberg". NHL.com.
  23. "Islanders announce compliance buyout for DiPietro". NHL.com.
  24. "Rangers buy out Wade Redden's contract". CBC News. January 17, 2013.
  25. Hascup, Jimmy (June 20, 2014). "Brad Richards bought out by Rangers". USA Today.
  26. "Flyers announce compliance buyout of Briere's contract". TSN. 20 June 2013. Archived from the original on 24 June 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  27. "Flyers will exercise compliance buyout on Bryzgalov". NHL.com.
  28. "Sharks using buyout on struggling winger Havlat - Sportsnet.ca".
  29. "Lightning to buy out remainder of Lecavalier's contract". TSN. 27 June 2013. Archived from the original on 30 June 2013. Retrieved 6 October 2018.
  30. "LIGHTNING USE COMPLIANCE BUYOUT ON F MALONE". TSN.ca. 2014-06-25. Retrieved 2014-06-25.
  31. "Maple Leafs use compliance buyout on Mike Komisarek". CBC News. July 2, 2013.
  32. "Maple Leafs to use compliance buyout on Grabovski". NHL.com.
  33. "Canucks inform Ballard that contract will be bought out". 3 July 2013.
  34. "CANUCKS PLACE BOOTH ON WAIVERS FOR EVENTUAL BUYOUT". Tsn.ca. The Canadian Press. Retrieved June 17, 2014.
  35. Carrera, Katie (July 3, 2013). "Capitals buy out Jeff Schultz". The Washington Post.
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