Sabres’ Berglund clears waivers

Patrik Berglund cleared through waivers on Thursday, moving things along in the process for the Buffalo Sabres to terminate his contract. It’s been less than a week since the center was suspended by the Sabres for failing to show up to the team flight to D.C.

Per CapFriendly, Berglund had 108 days remaining on this season’s portion of his contract, worth $2,729,032. He walked away from that as well as the three years he had remaining on his deal - meaning he’s walking away from a total of $12,579,032.

Once the contract is officially terminated, which is expected to happen in the coming days, the cap hit will come off with no repercussions.

That opens cap space for the Sabres that can be used in a multitude of ways going forward - including the re-signing of forward Jeff Skinner. According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, Skinner wants to remain in Buffalo - and the feeling is mutual. It’s expected that the two sides will begin talks in January, with the hope of signing Skinner to an extension before he hits free agency in July.

It’s still unclear what exactly led to this situation, as both Berglund and the Sabres have been fairly tight-lipped since last weekend’s suspension announcement. That, of course, hasn’t stopped others from chiming in, including NHL alumni - and mental health advocate - Dan Carcillo.

With that being said, this appears to be a win-win on both sides, with the Sabres being relieved of Berglund’s cap hit, and his getting the freedom to now become an unrestricted free agent and play wherever he wants. Whether that’s in the NHL or even in North America - or at all - will be revealed as time goes on.