Mike Reilly To Be Bought Out By Bruins

The Boston Bruins have been trying to create cap space all week long and according to TSN it looks as though they’ll make a little bit of room after placing defenseman Mike Reilly on waivers for the purposes of a buyout. Reilly has one year remaining on his contract with a cap hit of $3MM, the buyout will leave the Bruins with a cap charge of $1.33MM in each of the next two seasons, but will save Boston $1.66MM this year.

Reilly signed a three-year contract with the Bruins back in July 2021 and it seemed ill-fated even at the time. Reilly had never been able to produce much in the way of offence, and he seemed like an odd fit for Bruce Cassidy’s style of play. He managed to produce four goals and 13 assists in 70 games during his first season in Boston, but last year dressed in just 10 games and produced a single assist. Reilly became a cap casualty midway through last season and was sent to Boston’s AHL affiliate Providence where he played in 36 games posting seven goals and 19 assists. He didn’t dress in any playoff games for the Bruins.

While the buyout will hurt Reilly’s pocketbook it does seem likely that an NHL team will give him another look, although it will probably come at a very reduced salary. The free agent market is thin, but Reilly can offer a team veteran experience at a low cost. He does have his shortcomings though, as mentioned earlier he is very limited offensively and he struggles with his gap control as well as defending the rush. Should he find himself in an NHL lineup he would be best suited for a sheltered role on a third pairing.