The Coyotes have bought out the last three years of Mike Ribeiro's contract.
Last year the Coyotes signed the offensive centre to a four-year deal that carried a cap hit of $5.5 million dollars.
Things didn't work out in Phoenix. Coming off the lockout, Ribeiro racked up 49 points in 48 games for the Capitals, but didn't come close to replicating the point-per-game pace on the Coyotes.
He began the year as the team's first line centre, but his horrible face-off and defensive abilities didn't compensate for his only skill - playing the powerplay.
Ribeiro looked disinterested at times and his effort was constantly in question, he was even a healthy scratch for a game late in the season. For a guy with little to no grit to his game, he also has a penchant for taking bad penalties. Overall, during his time in Phoenix, he scored 13 goals and 47 points in 80 games.
GM Don Maloney called his signing "a mistake," and tantalizingly referred to "behavioral problems," although I have no idea what to make of that. Basically, I have no desire to participate in gossip and I don't have any clue what Maloney is referring to.
This is great news for the franchise. Not only do they rid themselves of a player who was not very good and who had a long term contract, it shows they are not the cheap-skates we are all afraid they might be.
Despite not spending to the cap, it has to be seen as a positive sign that the Coyotes would be willing to pay a player to go away. I honestly am shocked and while it was easy to see this coming from a hockey perspective, I did not think the 'Yotes would bite this financial bullet.
Good for them, as rumours about star defenseman Keith Yandle continue to swirl, and as I wrote earlier today, my fear is that they will move Yandle for non-hockey reasons. By being willing to pay the underachieving Ribeiro to go away, I think the Coyotes have shown that while they won't be spendthrifts, they are willing to spend at least some money to try to ice a competitive team.
Furthermore, the downside of the buy-out is that you have to keep the player on the books for several years (because this is not a compliance buy-out; Ribeiro signed after the new CBA and so is exempt) but the Coyotes will not be affected by this because they don't spend to the cap, so they probably won't mind having a lower cap-hit for Ribeiro for a longer time. (According to Capgeek.com Ribeiro will a $1.9 cap hit until 2020)
Thanks for reading, it's a great day to be a Coyotes fan.
Note: The Coyotes are also "definitely willing" to move Yandle. Blog from earlier:
http://www.hockeybuzz.com/blog.php?post_id=60930&blogger_id=200
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