Panthers Buy Out Defenseman Koistinen

The Florida Panthers announced Wednesday night that they have bought out the remaining year of Ville Koistinen's contract, making him an unrestricted free agent. In 17 games last season with the Panthers, he had one goal and three assists for four points. He also appeared in eight games with Rochester of the AHL, scoring one goal and one assist. This move really comes as no surprise since Koistinen was a frequent healthy scratch last season in Florida. He does have some offensive skill on the blueline and any teams looking for such a player could sign him to a new contract. However, I think it's very likely he will leave for Europe, as he hinted at doing so last summer when still with the Nashville Predators.

Cheechoo, Kotalik Among NHL Players Currently on Waivers

On Monday, the following NHL players have been placed on waivers with the purpose of buying out their contracts. The players will have until noon tomorrow to be claimed by other teams. If they go unclaimed, they will likely have their contracts bought out and become unrestricted free agents.

Jonathan Cheechoo, RW - Ottawa
Ville Koistinen, D - Florida
Ales Kotalik, RW - Calgary
Petteri Nokelainen, C - Phoenix
Jim Vandermeer, D - Phoenix

I will be surprised if any of these players are claimed off waivers, as any team interested in acquiring them would be better off waiting until they are bought out and signing them to new, more affordable contracts. Cheechoo currently carries a $3.5 million price tag, and with only five goals and 14 points in 61 games last season, will likely keep any team from wanting to claim him. Kotalik, who is currently set to earn $3 million during each of the next two seasons, was wildly inconsistent last season with the New York Rangers and Calgary Flames, managing only 11 goals and 27 points in 71 games. His inconsistent play, lack of scoring, and salary will likely keep him from going claimed.

Panthers Sign Defenseman Koistinen to Two-year Contract

The Florida Panthers announced on Wednesday that they have signed defenseman Ville Koistinen to a two-year contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. In 38 games last season with the Nashville Predators, Koistinen scored three goals and eight assists for 11 points. At the midway point of last season, Koistinen asked the Predators for a trade because he thought he wasn’t getting enough ice time, but the team could find no takers for the young defenseman. Not a bad signing for the Panthers, as Koistinen has the potential to become a top-four, offensive defenseman in the league. He will likely get plenty of ice time next season as the Panthers continue to rebuild their blueline after the departure of Jay Bouwmeester.