Today was the deadline for the New York Rangers to place
captain Chris Drury on waivers in order to be able to buy out the final years
of his five-year, $35.25 million dollar contract. As Jesse Spector was the first to report, the Rangers chose not to exercise the waiver
process today, so there no buyout will occur this week and the team will carry
his entire $7.05 million against the summer salary cap.
The team will likely place Drury on long-term
injured reserve in the fall to gain salary cap flexibility during the season,
if Drury does not do them a favor and retire before then. The move costs the Rangers $3.33 million
against the summer cap, but does save the $1.67 million that Drury would have
counted against the cap during the 2012-13 season.
The other option that could come into play would be the second buyout period in August, but that would require the Rangers to take one of their restricted free agents to arbitration, though that is not a great option.
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