Buffalo Sabres Forward Waives No-Movement Clause for Expansion Draft

Buffalo Sabres forward Jeff Skinner was asked to waive his no-movement clause to be exposed in the expansion draft and it turns out Skinner is open to a move to Seattle. Should the Kraken select him is now the $54 million dollar question.

Jeff Skinner has agreed to waive his NMC for the purpose of being exposed in the Seattle expansion draft, his agent, Don Meehan, told me.

— Lance Lysowski (@LLysowski) July 14, 2021

Yes, Skinner is set to make $9 million a season for the next six years and is certainly a contract the Kraken want no part of. The shifty forward is paid at an elite price, meanwhile has been mediocre the past couple of seasons. In 2020-21 he put up 14 points in 53 games and was a healthy scratch at times. Skinner's career production was timely as hell as he scored 40 goals in 2018-19, his contract year and next thing you know the Sabres are sending a Brinks truck to his house. They now realize that was a huge mistake.

While the Sabres are expected to make some major changes to their roster including trading Jack Eichel, Sam Reinhart and Rasmus Ristolainen, there isn't a market for Skinner at his price. If the team is able to find a suitor, they would need to eat the maximum salary allowed (15%) to be retained, and add a couple of sweeteners.

For now, Skinner sticks in Buffalo and hopes next season he's able to get his game back on track. If not, he's going to be one of the most expensive players in a suit eating popcorn, watching his team play.

Photo credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports