I don't see it as paying to get rid of Hodgson, what if I change it to 2016 3rd?
I'd rather eat the buyout then give up assets. Gormley is a decent piece but doesn't carry a ton of value. He's a bottom pairing d-man and Coyotes need to add something like 13M in contracts still to get to the cap floor. No UFA's other than leftovers will sign there, and nobody will sign beyond 1 year due to uncertainty (and the fact that they are going to make last year's sabres squad look good in comparison. It's Matthew's or bust over there)
Hodgson with 25% retention for Gormley is fair. ARZ gets a good fill in piece who can play in their top two lines while their youngsters cook in the minors. Buffalo gets a guy who is going to get pushed out by younger d-men/Grossman. It'd be win-win.