The Anaheim Ducks and Chris Kreider have mutually agreed to terminate his contract, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The Ducks are placing the 35-year-old forward on waivers for the purpose of contract termination. If he clears, Kreider will become an unrestricted free agent. He had one season left on his seven-year deal with a $6.5 million cap hit. The move gives Anaheim more cap space, which could help the Ducks as they work to get a new contract done with restricted free agent Cutter Gauthier.
Why Did Chris Kreider And Anaheim Ducks Agree To End His Contract?
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that Kreider and the Ducks have agreed to end his contract after just one season in Anaheim. Kreider had one year left on his seven-year deal, with a $6.5 million cap hit. He will be owed $4 million for the 2026-27 season after receiving his signing bonus on July 1.
Friedman reported that Kreider would prefer to return to the Eastern Conference and be closer to where he spent the first 13 years of his NHL career with the Rangers. The veteran forward can become a UFA if he clears waivers, but he will not report if he is claimed by a team he does not want to play for.
Ducks GM Pat Verbeek had looked at trade options for Kreider, but Friedman reported that he did not want to add extra assets to make a deal happen. With no trade option he wanted to complete, the Ducks and Kreider agreed to the termination. There is already interest in the 35-year-old forward after he scored 22 goals and 50 points in 75 games last season.
Could Chris Kreider’s Move Help The Ducks Get A Deal Done With Gauthier?
The Ducks had only about $9 million in salary cap space after matching the Flyers’ five-year, $90 million offer sheet for Leo Carlsson. With Cutter Gauthier still needing a new deal after scoring 41 goals last season, Anaheim needed to clear some money from its books before the season.
On Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and Carter Hutton discussed what the Kreider move could mean for the Ducks. Hutton said Anaheim had been trying to get money off the books and felt the team needed to make this move. He also said Kreider had helped with culture building and leadership, but was no longer going to be the same impact player for the Ducks.
Yaremchuk noted that the Kreider move is making people think about a Cutter Gauthier deal soon. He pointed out that Anaheim had $9.07 million in cap space with 12 forwards, seven defensemen, and three goalies. Kreider’s departure would free up $6.5 million, while Kreider and Brossoit coming off the roster would add $7.6 million. Added to the $9.07 million, that would give Anaheim more than $16.5 million in cap space. Yaremchuk believes that should be enough to get a Cutter Gauthier deal done.
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