NHL Rumors: Karlsson, Hanifin request trades, Meier back with Devils

Transaction: Vancouver Canucks reach buyout with Oliver Ekman-Larsson.

The Vancouver Canucks have decided to buy out Oliver Ekman-Larsson’s contract. The 31-year-old defenseman still had four years left on his eight-year, $66-million contract. He was set to earn an AAV of $8.25 million. Vancouver will still be on the books for that contract. Except it goes to their “Dead cap” department. If picked up, that team will have Ekman-Larsson for free.

During the 2022-23 season, the Swedish native scored two goals and had 22 points in 54 games. In 2021-22 he scored five goals and had 29 points in 79 games. It’s only gotten worse for him. Ekman-Larsson was traded to Vancouver from the Arizona Coyotes in July 2021, along with Connor Garland, in exchange for the No. 9 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft (Dylan Guenther), plus forwards Loui Eriksson, Jay Beagle, and Antoine Roussel.

Although it is uncommon to see a team buy out a player with many years remaining on his contract, Vancouver did it.

Before the transaction, the team was projected to enter the 2023 off-season approximately $668,000 over the cap.

Now, Vancouver has some money to spend. They can use the space on a younger defenseman to aid their rebuild. The price of freeing up that space is a significant cap hit through 2030-31. Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin spoke about the decision on Friday.

"“The business of hockey is very complex, and tough decisions have to be made if you want to remain competitive,” . “Buying out Oliver gives us a lot more flexibility and cap space the next couple of years and significantly reduces his hit in the subsequent season.”"

Before the trade, Ekman-Larsson spent nine seasons with the Coyotes. He ranked 15th among all blueliners in points (345) and fifth in ice time (15,486:04). During that period, he had two 20-goal seasons. He led the Coyotes in points twice and received Norris Trophy votes five times.

It will be interesting to see how much interest Ekman-Larsson generates in the free agent market. Some teams may view him as a player who can contribute in a less prominent role than he had in Vancouver. He played an average of 21:27 per night over the past two seasons.