Granted he's far better off than most, but while 2.2M sounds great, it is really about 1.4 (majors vs minors salary). Then take into account escrow, agent fees and taxes he probably saw about 800K. Swiss is about 200K year (tax free) so he likely ended up with about 1.5M Canadian all said and done You also have to assume he did not save every dime, fully expecting to have a longer career.
So yes, he likely can outright afford to buy a modest house, although at about 1M for a house in Barrie he may still have a mortgage. Its far better off than most could hope for, but its also a far cry from what an NHL player expects to get out of his career.
Given the writing seemed on the wall, not taking the QO from Ottawa turned into a big mistake. And for all we know, he may have been offered more.