Wade Redden and Scott Gomez have officially been placed on unconditional waivers on Wednesday afternoon.
With the implementation of the accelerated compliance buyout provision coming on Tuesday, both the Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers have taken the necessary measures to utilize the new amendement to the collective bargaining agreement.
If Redden and Gomez clear waivers by noon on Thursday (which is fully expected to occur), they will be informed of their buyouts and will become unrestricted free agents.
Montreal and New York will be required to pay the entirety of the players' salaries this season regardless of whether they sign with another team. In addition, they will be responsible for the cap-hit of the contract for this season only. After the year, the cap-hit comes off the books.
If the player signs with a new team, he will be paid by both the new and old teams.
The accelerated buyout was enacted because the Canadiens and Rangers were going to have Gomez and Redden sit out the entire year to avoid injury. Injured players are not allowed to be given a compliance buyout.
All teams are permitted to use an accelerated buyout prior to the start of the regular season on Saturday. Each team can use two buyouts, which can be used this offseason or next.