The Athletic’s Eric Duhatschek calling for a PLD buyout in year one.
L.A. has a simple, but expensive, solution to its Dubois problem — admit they made a grievous error and pay the man to go away.
theathletic.com
Because Dubois is only 25 years old, that means he could be bought out for one-third of his remaining contract value. If a player is 26 or older when they're bought out, it costs two-thirds the remaining value. Dubois will turn 26 on June 24.
BUT....
The first buyout window opens either on June 15, or 48 hours after the Stanley Cup Final ends, whichever is later. And, according to the NHL's key dates calendar, the last possible day of this year's Stanley Cup Final is...June 24. If the playoffs go late enough, the Kings may not even have an opportunity to buy out Dubois at one-third the rate.
And add to that actually having the cap hit for the next 14 years.... Ouch.
I think the GM ( if he wants to keep his job ) and the team itself, just has to keep him and hope he actually can be a better player.