Red Wings 2005-2006 Payroll

A few days ago I mentioned the sad reality Wings fans face with the new economic system. Here's the situation: Forwards Kris Draper - $2,800,000 ($2,128,000) Tomas Holmstrom - $1,800,000 ($1,368,000) Jiri Hudler - $750,000 ($570,000) Robert Lang - $5,000,000 ($3,800,000) Kirk Maltby - $1,900,000 ($1,444,000) Darren McCarty - $2,250,000 ($1,710,000) Mark Mowers - $375,000 ($285,000) Brendan Shanahan - $3,000,000 ($2,280,000) Ray Whitney - $3,500,000 ($2,660,000) Defensemen Jiri Fischer - $1,700,000 ($1,292,000) Derian Hatcher - $6,500,000 ($4,940,000) Nicklas Lidstrom - $10,000,000 ($7,600,000) Jamie Rivers - $400,000 ($304,000) Goalies Manny Legace - $1,500,000 ($1,140,000) ----$49,475,000 (*$37,601,000) ----14 players *24% rollback in parenthesis Note: Minimum Salary was $185,000 Buyouts/Re-negotiations/Deferments Based on a cap system with a floor of $22-24 million and a ceiling of $34-36 million, obviously the Wings will have to dump/re-negotiate or defer salaries: Ray Whitney: re-negotiate at $1,500,000, otherwise buyout Derian Hatcher: re-negotiate at $3,500,000, otherwise buyout Nicklas Lidstrom: re-negotiate at $6,000,000, otherwise buyout ----Payroll becomes $22,401,000 at least or $33,401,000 at most Signings Left Henrik Zetterberg - $1,500,000 Pavel Datsyuk - $2,000,000 Steve Yzerman - $750,000 Jason Williams - $750,000 Jason Woolley - $500,000 Niklas Kronwall - $500,000 Mathieu Dandenault - $750,000 Backup Goaltender - $1,000,000 Grand Rapids Griffin - $200,000 ----Cost of additions: $7,950,000 ---- 9 players, 23 total I'm assuming the Wings will sign all of the above nine players, or use the close to $8 million towards those roster spots. That brings the payroll to $30,351,000, without Whitney, Hatcher, or Lidstrom locked in. Not a good situation when the cap ceiling looks to be $36 million. It's going to be virtually impossible to sign the "buyout trio" for a total $5,649,000. I'll even go out on a limb and say the Wings might get McCarty, Draper, and Shanahan to defer a total of $1.5 million. That still leaves only $7,149,000 for the trio. Still not gonna happen. So that brings the sad reality I mentioned a few days ago: buyouts. The hometown hero and boat-racing defenseman Derian Hatcher is out the door. His contract is an obvious dinosaur, and his value has been lacking. Granted he only played 27 games with the Wings due to a torn ACL, I just don't think he's worth more than $750,000 base salary (maybe more with bonuses). Don't fret Derian, there are plenty of other places you can race your boats. Without worrying about Derian's dough, the Wings get Lidstrom and Whitney re-negotiated at $6 million and $1.5 million, respectively. So that brings the Wings' total payroll to $36,351,000, with a roster spot open with Hatcher's exit. Remember, a $36 million cap. Close enough for tonight... To summarize what just happened, here's how you get the Wings in the neighborhood of $36 million payroll: - Keep 11 players already signed for the season (minus Hatcher, Lidstrom, Whitney) - That makes $22,401,000 payroll - McCarty, Draper, Shanahan defer a total $1,500,000 - Now we're at $20,901,000 - Whitney and Lidstrom agree to re-negotiations for $2,760,000 less - Buyout Hatcher's $4,940,000 post-rollback salary - Now $28,401,000 - Add in signings of nine player free agents - $36,351,000 for 22 players (Hatcher's spot open) *This is all assuming the cap will be at $36 million, the 24% rollback across the board will be exercised, player re-negotiations/deferments will work out, and that buyouts can occur with the transfer fee not going towards the overall roster payroll that must stay under cap. A lot of uncertainty, but at least it's a good exercise of accounting to see how things might work. UPDATE 6/26 11:57 am

"The expected new collective bargaining agreement (due any day now at your local rink) is expected to contain a clause in which teams are allowed a one-time chance to buy out any and all contracts and not have it count against the new salary cap...Some big money teams wanted a dispersal draft, but the players shot that down. So, the buyout was a compromise, with one interesting twist - the teams can't reacquire their own players."

The Dallas Morning News That answers two questions I've had, if that's an accurate source. I'm glad buying out players won't count against the teams, but it scares me a bit that they can't reacquire bought-out players. What happens when a team buys out an aging veteran, and he remains un-signed by the rest of the league? Does he just have to wait till next season? There should be a interm period where the teams can't re-sign their bought-out players, but say 180 days later, the possibility should be open. That'd be around December. I guess in that scenario, it would probably be pretty obvious the player would not be taken on the open market, and the player would have to re-negotiate his contract instead of being bought out and taking the risk of waiting 180 days. UPDATE 6/28 8:24 PM Well, it's good to see someone's reading the site. Ansar Khan from Mlive that is. Here's his curiously similar take on the Wings' 2005-2006 payroll. Only one thing he missed: Nick Lidstrom. And how can you forget a $7.6 million dollar post-rollback salary in a $36 million cap?