Breaking Down The NHL's Top Buyout Candidates For The 2026 Off-Season
The NHL's buyout window is open.
The window opened 48 hours after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup final, which happened on Sunday evening when the Carolina Hurricanes won it all. It lasts until June 30, according to PuckPedia.
Buyouts allow teams to end a player's contract early by paying a portion of the remaining value over a period that is twice as long as the remaining term of their contract. By doing so, a smaller amount of their salary will count against the salary cap each season during the final years of their initial contract.
Explaining The NHL Buyout Window & What It Means For The Islanders
Discover the financial stakes of the offseason as teams navigate salary cap penalties and long-term dead money to shed underperforming contracts before the June 30 deadline.
Ondrej Palat, LW, New York Islanders
$6-million cap hit for one more season
After making a series of solid moves to start out his tenure as GM with the Islanders, Mathieu Darche made a questionable choice to acquire Ondrej Palat from the New Jersey Devils in January, although the team also received a third-round draft pick and a sixth-rounder with the veteran for trading Maxim Tsyplakov.
After joining the Islanders, the 35-year-old scored just one goal and finished with only five points while averaging less than 13 minutes of ice time over the final 29 games of the campaign. He had five goals and 15 points in 80 games overall this season.
Buying out Palat would give the Islanders $3.3 million in cap savings for next season while only having an additional $1.6 million on their books in 2027-28.
It's clear that Palat is not in the team's long-term or even immediate plans based on his usage under new coach Pete DeBoer. That extra money could allow them to find a better fit for their timeline.
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This story was originally published June 17, 2026 at 7:19 AM.