Two high profile names hit waivers at the deadline and will be bought out
Two notable players are hitting the free agency market Friday after being placed on waivers today for the purpose of buying out the remainder of their contract. The first is forward Alex Wennberg of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who is being joined by goaltender Cory Schneider of the New jersey Devils.
Wennberg, 26, was the 14th overall pick of the Blue Jackets back in 2013. In 2017, he signed a new six-year, $29.4 million contract with Columbus, but he has not lived up to expectations. According to The Athletic, the move will allow the Blue Jackets to save roughly $10.7 million over the next three years. They'll be on the hook for only one-third of the $16.05 million in salary still owed to Wennberg ($5.35 million per season).
Schneider has been with the New Jersey Devils since the 2013-14 season, after being traded there by the Vancouver Canucks. His play has dropped off significantly the last couple of seasons and he even spent time in the minors in 2019-20 after servings as the Devils starter for a few years. Schneider has two years remaining on his contract at $6 million per season (AAV). Buying him out will save the Devils around $4 million.
2020-21 will be a tough season for many players as several teams are committed to cutting costs and not spending to the league-imposed salary cap after losing millions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Wennberg is a good candidate to get signed by another team, but it will likely be at a much lower cost. At 34, Schneider's playing days in the NHL could be over.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Quinton Byfield | - | 4 | 4 | |
| Trevor Moore | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Warren Foegele | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Adrian Kempe | - | 2 | 2 | |
| Joel Edmundson | 1 | - | 1 | |
| William Eklund | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Kevin Fiala | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Brayden McNabb | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Josh Morrissey | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mark Scheifele | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Mark Stone | 1 | - | 1 | |
| Macklin Celebrini | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Kyle Connor | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Nikolaj Ehlers | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Noah Hanifin | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Tomas Hertl | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Brett Howden | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Kaedan Korczak | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Darcy Kuemper | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Will Smith | - | 1 | 1 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Jets | 58 | 41 | 14 | 3 | 85 | |
Capitals | 57 | 38 | 11 | 8 | 84 | |
Stars | 57 | 37 | 18 | 2 | 76 | |
Golden Knights | 58 | 34 | 18 | 6 | 74 | |
Maple Leafs | 57 | 35 | 20 | 2 | 72 | |
Oilers | 57 | 34 | 19 | 4 | 72 | |
Wild | 57 | 34 | 19 | 4 | 72 | |
Panthers | 58 | 34 | 21 | 3 | 71 | |
Hurricanes | 57 | 33 | 20 | 4 | 70 | |
Devils | 59 | 32 | 21 | 6 | 70 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||