Bob McKenzie: Buffalo's buyout of defenceman Christian Ehrhoff has been finalized. He's UFA.
So TB gets pretty much nothing except cap space and they lose a pretty good player in Purcel
TB must have a player they know they're getting via UfA
What a weird move by TB
Well, if Purcell stays as a 36-42 point player, his $4.5M pricetag is a little expensive. If he bounces back & becomes a ~55 point player, then he's worth his contract. Maybe Tampa doesn't think he'll ever get back to his 17g 51pts or 24g 65pts seasons.
It's just to clear capspace.
Maybe they're getting Spezza? Or going hard after Stastny?