The long awaited buyout that was supposed to be used on goaltender, Matt Murray, was never used and it's starting to make a lot more sense as to why the Toronto Maple Leafs never pulled off what seemed to be the most obvious move for a cap-strapped team.
Earlier today, the Maple Leafs announced that they had placed Murray on the long-term injured reserve indefinitely to start the regular season. His salary can now be stashed aside on the LTIR alongside Jake Muzzin, which drops their projected cap space from being over $12.4 million to just a shade over $2 million with a 22-man roster.
CapFriendly tweeted out shortly afterwards that because Murray was indeed injured and would be placed on the LTIR, the Leafs were never in a place where they could have used a buyout as the rules of the CBA stipulate that you can't utilize a buyout on an injured player.
The news was quite shocking because there were never any rumours or reports indicating that the goaltender was injured once again. He was technically available when Ilya Samsonov went down in the Florida series but was never used, with Joseph Woll taking over starting duties with the series on the line. Murray was present on the bench, in case another injury had struck, preventing Woll from playing.
Murray has had a complicated history with injuries and that was the case again this past season after suffering an adductor injury in October, an ankle injury in January, and a concussion in April.
In terms of business, this helps the Leafs financially because they can alleviate the burden of his entire $4.6875 million cap hit on the LTIR, they don't have to retain any salary if they eventually found a trade partner, they don't have to cough up a draft pick or prospect as compensation and, most importantly, they won't be carrying dead salary next year when they most desperately need as much money as they can muster for when the Auston Matthews and William Nylander extensions kick in.
