BREAKING: Oilers buy out D Andrej Sekera

The Edmonton Oilers announced today via Twitter that they have placed d-man Andrej Sekera on unconditional waivers in order to buyout the final 2 years on his contract.

The #Oilers have placed defenceman Andrej Sekera on unconditional waivers for the purpose of a buyout.

Edmonton Oilers, Twitter, @EdmontonOilers

Sekera had 2 years remaining on a six year, $33 million contract signed on July 1st, 2015, with an average annual value (AAV) of $5.5 million.

The past 2 seasons have been rough for Sekera, which saw him play only 36 games in 2017-18 due to an ACL tear, and this past year his season was cut short due to an Achilles injury, only playing 24 games.

Over those 60 games in the past 2 seasons, Sekera only managed to put up 12 assists, no goals. At his best, Sekera was a threat to put up 30+ points from the blue-line, headlined by his 44 point season with the Carolina Hurricanes in 2013-14.

Sekera will now be a UFA and he can sign with any team come July 1st. For the Oilers, this opens up $3 million in cap space, presumably to make some moves once free agency opens.

Buyout Cap Hit per year (via CapFriendly):
2019-20         2020-21         2021-22         2022-23
$2.5 million   $2.5 million   $1.5 million    $1.5 million