Bob Duff: Sulak Signs With KHL Defenseman Libor Sulak, who played six games for the Detroit Red Wings last season, has signed with Severstal Cherepovets of the KHL.

Good riddance. Sulak, Chelios, Sateri were just blocking others. Letting most of that useless 2017 draft class hit the road was another smart move. Yzerman clearly isn't afraid to cut ties rather than hold every asset to the bitter end.

I'm just so glad Holland is out and not having to wonder if he's going to extend a contract to an older useless veteran that's taking potential growth / development from any of the prospects. Praise Jesus he's finally out of the organization.

My question is... who's contract should the Wings do a buyout ? I was thinking Abdelkader would be my first choice. Neilson would be my second choice. Wonder if Stevie will pull the trigger.

Buyouts only make sense if you need both the cap space and the roster spot in the short term, and the ongoing cap penalty is manageable over the medium/long term.

Abdelkader and Nielsen buyouts would be a massive headache for years to come. Abby's hit would be on the books for eight more years if we bought him out this summer. (Stephen Weiss is still on the books, this year and next, to give you some indication of how draining this can be. And he's only been gone for four years.)

Moreover, because of the way cap relief from buyouts is calculated (essentially, relief = original compensation for that year - annual buyout cost), buyout cap hits can get expensive at the end of a back-diving deal. For example, if we bought Nielsen out today, then penalty for 2019-20 would only be $800k, but that grows to a max of $4.8 million in 2021-22, before dropping back to a $1 million for three more years. Likewise, Abby's buyout would be at its most expensive in 21-22 and 22-23. In other words, by the time we're hoping this team could finally be good again, we could be hamstrung by millions and millions of dead money on buyouts.

And the Wings don't need the cap space this year anyway.

If it's just about clearing a roster spot so that a rookie can play in place of a washed up veteran, it makes far more sense this year (IMO) to just waive the vet and send him to the minors. You don't get as much cap relief in the short term, but that doesn't matter because you don't actually need it. Then, if the team does get good and you do actually need the extra cap relief in a year or two, you can buy him out then and save yourself a couple extra years of dead buyout money.

If the unexpected happens (say the Wings make a play for, I dunno, Karlsson or something) and a buyout does become necessary for short-term cap reasons, my preference would be Daley and / or Ericsson, based on how much relief is needed. They only have one year left each, so buying them out doesn't jeopardize your cap long term.

I wonder which prospect Yzerman has his eye on with that #6 pick? You can make a case for any 1 of Byram, Turcotte, Cozens, Dach, Zegras, Podkolzin or Caufield.

Buyouts only make sense if you need both the cap space and the roster spot in the short term, and the ongoing cap penalty is manageable over the medium/long term.

Abdelkader and Nielsen buyouts would be a massive headache for years to come. Abby's hit would be on the books for eight more years if we bought him out this summer. (Stephen Weiss is still on the books, this year and next, to give you some indication of how draining this can be. And he's only been gone for four years.)

Moreover, because of the way cap relief from buyouts is calculated (essentially, relief = original compensation for that year - annual buyout cost), buyout cap hits can get expensive at the end of a back-diving deal. For example, if we bought Nielsen out today, then penalty for 2019-20 would only be $800k, but that grows to a max of $4.8 million in 2021-22, before dropping back to a $1 million for three more years. Likewise, Abby's buyout would be at its most expensive in 21-22 and 22-23. In other words, by the time we're hoping this team could finally be good again, we could be hamstrung by millions and millions of dead money on buyouts.

And the Wings don't need the cap space this year anyway.

If it's just about clearing a roster spot so that a rookie can play in place of a washed up veteran, it makes far more sense this year (IMO) to just waive the vet and send him to the minors. You don't get as much cap relief in the short term, but that doesn't matter because you don't actually need it. Then, if the team does get good and you do actually need the extra cap relief in a year or two, you can buy him out then and save yourself a couple extra years of dead buyout money.

If the unexpected happens (say the Wings make a play for, I dunno, Karlsson or something) and a buyout does become necessary for short-term cap reasons, my preference would be Daley and / or Ericsson, based on how much relief is needed. They only have one year left each, so buying them out doesn't jeopardize your cap long term.
- Sven22

Good to know... didn't realize how bad it could hamstring the team at this point in time. If just further shows how bad some of these horrid contracts are. You just can't get rid of them no matter what. Ugghh....

I wonder which prospect Yzerman has his eye on with that #6 pick? You can make a case for any 1 of Byram, Turcotte, Cozens, Dach, Zegras, Podkolzin or Caufield.
- gergeswillems

Rumors are rampant that the Hawks are grabbing Turcotte at #3. I'm doubtful that Byram will be available at #6... but it could happen if LA passes on him.

My first choice would be Byram. My next choice after him is Cozens... then Dach. If we can't get the coveted cornerstone defenseman this team needs then I think a big talented center would benefit this team the most. Just my 2 cents.

Rumors are rampant that the Hawks are grabbing Turcotte at #3. I'm doubtful that Byram will be available at #6... but it could happen if LA passes on him.

My first choice would be Byram. My next choice after him is Cozens... then Dach. If we can't get the coveted cornerstone defenseman this team needs then I think a big talented center would benefit this team the most. Just my 2 cents.
- Vladdie_Kon1

It'll be interesting to see what happens. I like Caufield and Zegras. But the Wings will get a very good player nonetheless.