Wilbur*
Guest
Some of those NMC seem to have wiggle room as modified NTC, according to the archives of Capgeek :
http://web.archive.org/web/20141231071731/http://www.capgeek.com/mapleleafs/
For starters, I see no reason for Bozak and Clarkson to be on the Leafs next year.
The Clarkson buyout is interesting. For those of us in Toronto who have lived thru the Ballard years and have accused ownership of being much more concerned about making money rather than icing (or fielding or courting) a winner, here's another acid test.
A Clarkson buy-out will cost MLSE a lot of money, almost the entire amount still owing for the next five years minus approx. $2,500,000. But cap-wise it will buy them relief, no question about it.
In years 6 thru 10 after this year, the cap penalty will translate to the Leafs only being able to spend to 96-97% of the cap because of the lingering $1,833,333 dead cap-space from the Clarkson buyout.
But most importantly, does ownership want to shed the losing elements, the laughing stock elements of it's hockey club, or do they instead laugh at the fan base who will continue to fill the coffers of MLSE by keeping Clarkson?
As a 4th-liner with a cap-hit of $5,250,000, the Leafs can easily fill that spot on the roster by spending $1,000,000 or less. The cap-hit of a Clarkson buy-out would be:
2015-16: 1,583,000
2016-17: 83,333
2017-18: 83,333
2018-19: 2,333,333
2019-20: 3,833,333
Cap-space saved every year by replacing Clarkson with a $1 million player, in the early years significant savings. The savings dwindle in years 4-5 but the Gleason buy-out will be off the books by then.
http://www.pensionplanpuppets.com/2013/12/13/5208704/david-clarkson-buyout-chart
I hope it happens ASAP.