The Anaheim Ducks knew matching Leo Carlsson’s offer sheet was going to have consequences.
They just probably didn’t expect Chris Kreider to become one of them.
The Ducks placed Kreider on unconditional waivers Wednesday with the intention of terminating his contract, clearing $6.5 million in salary-cap space in the process. The move comes as Anaheim tries to find enough room to sign Cutter Gauthier, who is coming off a 41-goal, 69-point season.
That makes the timing pretty clear.
The Ducks needed to make room for Gauthier, and general manager Pat Verbeek reportedly explored trading Kreider before ultimately deciding that termination was the better option.
According to Elliotte Friedman on the latest 32 Thoughts podcast, however, the trade market wasn’t particularly kind to Anaheim. Teams were reportedly asking the Ducks to attach a first- or second-round pick just to take Kreider’s contract.
Verbeek wasn’t going to do that.
And honestly, who could blame him?
Kreider scored 22 goals and 50 points in 75 games last season. Giving away a premium draft pick to dump a productive veteran simply because of a cap crunch would have made an already complicated situation even worse.
So the Ducks took the painful option instead.
Chris Kreider Became an Unfortunate Casualty
The frustrating part for the Ducks is that none of this really needed to happen to Kreider.
Kreider wasn’t a problem. He wasn’t washed up. He wasn’t taking up a roster spot without contributing.
Kreider was actually one of Anaheim’s productive veterans during its return to the playoffs, and now he is being pushed out because the Ducks have run into a salary-cap problem of their own making.
The root of the problem goes back to Carlsson.
The Ducks allowed the contract situation to linger long enough for Philadelphia to weaponize the offer sheet. The Flyers came in with an unprecedented five-year, $90 million offer, forcing Anaheim to choose between accepting four first-round picks or matching an $18 million annual salary.
The Ducks chose Carlsson.
That was understandable. But it changed everything.
Once Carlsson received $18 million per season, the market for Anaheim’s other young stars was going to look very different. Gauthier is coming off 41 goals and 69 points, and suddenly the Ducks are negotiating with a player who can point directly to the richest contract in NHL history as a comparable.
That’s how Kreider became the casualty.
The veteran forward wasn’t the problem. He was simply the easiest piece to remove.
And that’s a tough way for a player who performed well to leave town.
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The Ducks Are Betting Everything on Their Young Core
There is another consequence here that could become much more important.
The Ducks have effectively committed themselves to their young core.
Carlsson has his $18 million contract. Gauthier needs to be signed. The organization has also committed significant money elsewhere this summer, including a five-year, $36 million deal for Pavel Mintyukov.
There simply isn’t going to be unlimited room for reinforcements.
That could become especially important at the trade deadline.
If Anaheim has a weakness next season, Verbeek may not have the financial flexibility to simply go shopping for an expensive solution. The Ducks have already made their big bets. Now they have to live with them.
And that puts enormous pressure on Carlsson and Gauthier.
Carlsson has to justify being the highest-paid player in NHL history. Gauthier has to show that his 41-goal breakout was the beginning of something rather than a one-year spike.
If both players deliver, Verbeek can point to the Kreider decision as an unfortunate but necessary cost of building a contender.
If they don’t, the conversation changes completely.
Suddenly, Verbeek will face serious questions about how the Ducks managed their cap and whether matching Carlsson’s offer sheet was worth everything that came afterward.
Kreider is already paying the price.
Now the young stars have to make sure it was worth it.
Cutter Gauthier Contract Just Forced Ducks Into a Painful Decision