A year ago, when the Tampa Bay Lightning orchestrated the Ryan McDonagh trade to the Nashville Predators, it brought forth a noteworthy acquisition – Philippe Myers, a then-25-year-old defenseman.
During the preceding summer, Myers stood out as a compelling trade target, mainly due to his contract’s unconventional nature and not his play on the ice. This contract held a distinctiveness because initiating a buyout would have yielded an astonishing -$616,666 cap hit for the 2022-23 season. This seemingly inconceivable figure was the result of two factors: firstly, his age below 26, which the CBA dictates that players under 26 subject to buyouts receive only 1/3 of their remaining base salary; secondly, his scheduled base salary of $3.