Shea weber current contract

Tampa is expected to use close to all of Seabrook’s potential relief to stay compliant throughout the season.

Toronto Maple Leafs – Jake Muzzin, Matt Murray

While not confirmed, Muzzin’s playing future remains in serious doubt after sustaining a cervical spine fracture at the beginning of last season.

Although his $7.857MM salary wasn’t a hurdle for Utah this year, it would have been next year as the team looks to make significant additions to the roster.

On the other side of the trade, the Blackhawks essentially purchased a pair of younger players from Utah. However, it’s important to note that although the Blackhawks now own Söderström’s contractual rights, he’s under no commitment to return to the NHL.

Meanwhile, Räty is another prospect who has yet to break out meaningfully.

Söderström is the most notable of the two, being the former 11th overall pick of the 2019 NHL Draft. To be eligible for LTIR, a player must miss at least ten games or 24 days of action. The team announced last month he’d begin next season on LTIR, but no specific details of his injury were confirmed, and no timetable was issued for a potential return.

Since then, he’s scored one goal and 11 points in 53 contests, averaging 16:10 of ice time per game. Instead, a team only gains cap relief if they exceed the Upper Limit, and the specific amount of relief received depends on the team’s cap situation on the day they place a player on LTIR. While eligible, he’s unlikely to actually be placed on LTIR.

Pacioretty should be joining the Capitals after signing a one-year deal last month, sometime in November or December if everything goes well in his recovery.

Central Division

Arizona Coyotes – Jakub Voracek, Shea Weber, Bryan Little

All three are players acquired by the Coyotes for the express consideration of helping them stay above the cap floor – which they are now far above after being big players on the free-agent market this summer.

Given the Ducks are far from the Upper Limit, and Lundeström carries just a $1.8MM cap hit, Anaheim could keep him on standard injured reserve for the duration of his absence.

Vegas Golden Knights – Robin Lehner

All has been quiet on Lehner’s health after he missed all of last season. He was not around the team at all during their run to the 2023 Stanley Cup, and the team has issued no updates on his recovery since undergoing the surgery last summer.

However, they don’t need to be placed on LTIR if they’re projected to miss more than that amount of time. Placing a player on LTIR does not eliminate their cap hit from the team’s books until they’re activated again.

As we covered earlier in the week, Montreal is in a bit of a no man’s land with Price’s contract. The All-Star-caliber netminder had double hip surgery last summer, keeping him out for the entire 2022-23 campaign. Weber has effectively been retired since skating in the 2021 Stanley Cup Final. Oftentimes, a team operating far below the Upper Limit that won’t need any relief will simply keep the player on standard injured reserve, especially if they’re relying on an injured player’s cap hit to stay above the Lower Limit (set at $61.7MM next season).

With that said, here is a list of players who are projected to meet the injury requirements for LTIR to start 2023-24:

Atlantic Division

Buffalo Sabres – Jack Quinn

This offseason was a tough break for the young Quinn, who sustained an Achilles injury during offseason training in June and is expected to be out of the lineup through Thanksgiving.