CBA/Retirement Question

[Famous Flames]

Is it possible for a team to sign a player in the offseason in order for that player to retire as a member of that team? I think the anwer is the team will still get a cap hit for the player, or is that only if it's a multiyear deal?

Example: Let's say Belfour wants to hang 'em up and retire as a Star. Can they sign him to a one year league minimum deal and have him retire the next day without any negative impact?

I know this is not so common in hockey, but it's very common in football.

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[thebigstubbs*]

Is it possible for a team to sign a player in the offseason in order for that player to retire as a member of that team? I think the anwer is the team will still get a cap hit for the player, or is that only if it's a multiyear deal?

Example: Let's say Belfour wants to hang 'em up and retire as a Star. Can they sign him to a one year league minimum deal and have him retire the next day without any negative impact?

I know this is not so common in hockey, but it's very common in football.

yes it would count against the cap.

The nhl closed the loophole that was there.

 

[RTWAP*]

yes it would count against the cap.

The nhl closed the loophole that was there.

You could probably petition the commissioner for an exception though. Gary likes good PR.

 

[kdb209]

yes it would count against the cap.

The nhl closed the loophole that was there.

Nope. As long as he signs a 1 yr deal, the cap hit is off the books when the player retires. The only exception is the AlMo rule - a player who signs a multi year deal at age 35+ yo.

If he signs during the offseason, his contract will count against the cap (which has a 10% offseson bump) before the season starts. Once the season starts, only the actual salary paid (prorated on a per day basis) would count against the cap, and once he retired, he would have no further cap hit.

So yes, this would work. The minimum cap hit would be if he signed after the season started, remained on the roster for one day, and then retired. His total cap hit would be 1/184th of $450K (min salary).