These are the 5 most likely NHL buyout candidates

4. Tyler Ennis – Minnesota Wild

Tyler Ennis is a bit of a tragic story. He was really good with the Buffalo Sabres in 2014-15 with 46 points. On a team that wound up being one of the worst non-expansion teams of all-time, Ennis was a bright spot. However, injuries hit him hard. Ennis played just 74 games combined the next two seasons before being traded to the Minnesota Wild.

Though he had his first full season since his injuries, playing in 73 games, he had 22 points. That’s not acceptable for someone with a $4.6 million cap hit. Unlike Brouwer, Ennis has just one year left on his contract. So buying him out doesn’t give the Wild quite as much help as buying out Brouwer would to the Flames.

That said, Minnesota desperately needs cap space. They have to re-sign both Jason Zucker and Matt Dumba. Getting rid of either would significantly decrease their chances of winning. Buying out Ennis would give him a cap hit of $1.216667 million per year over the next two years. The first year, the Wild would save $2.433333 million. It would, however, cost them $1.216667 million in the second year. That’s nothing to sneeze at, given the Wild’s salary cap situation.

Buying out Ennis would probably help Minnesota stay afloat for one more year, especially if they can re-sign both Zucker and Dumba. Chuck Fletcher made a lot of bad mistakes. New general manager Paul Fenton would be wise to try to get a team to take on his full cap hit for next year. But buying him out would be a wiser option than keeping him.