Steve Yzerman hinted Kailer Yamamoto would not be long for the Detroit Red Wings, and executed that plan a day after acquiring the former first-round pick.
Yamamoto was placed on waivers Friday for the purpose of buying out the 24-year-old forward, whose contract runs through next season at a $3.1 million salary cap hit. Yzerman acquired Yamamoto and Klim Kostin Thursday from the Edmonton Oilers; it was Kostin the Wings wanted, but Yzerman had to take on Yamamoto’s contract for the deal to happen.
Yzerman sent “future considerations” to his former mentor, Edmonton Oilers general manager Ken Holland, which is codeword for a lower-round pick, or maybe buying Holland dinner some time.
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The trade happened during a busy second day at the 2023 NHL draft. Yzerman said afterwards: “We have to figure out exactly what our plan and where Kailer (fits). I haven’t even had a chance to talk to him or his agent to figure out what our plan there is.”
In buying out Yamamoto, Yzerman saves cap space and opens a roster spot. The Wings will owe him $533,334 over each of the next two seasons, but it’s only $433,334 against the cap in 2023-24 and $533,334 in 2024-25.
Yamamoto joins Justin Abdelkader in the Wings’ accounting books under buyout costs. Abdelkader, whose buyout was triggered in 2020, four years into a seven-year, $29,750,000 contract, is on the books for three more seasons at a cost of $1,055,556.
Yamamoto was selected at No. 22 by the Oilers in the 2017 NHL draft and notched 50 goals and 118 points over his six-year career.
Contact Helene St. James at hstjames@freepress.com. Follow her on Twitter @helenestjames.
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