The Toronto Maple Leafs have secured a win off the ice.
The club has reportedly won its arbitration case with defenseman Jared Cowen, whose contract will remain bought out, according to TSN's Bob McKenzie.
The argument on Cowen's end was that the one year remaining on his deal could not be bought out due to his ongoing recovery from hip surgery, technically rendering him injured.
This allegation appears to have been deemed unfounded.
Basically, arbitrator ruled there was no evidence Cowen was unfit when TOR bought him out
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) December 7, 2016
Now, the contract is void, meaning Cowen is a free agent and the Maple Leafs will hold onto the cap credit instead of having to pay the $4.5 million in actual salary that would have remained on the deal.
with #Leafs winning Arb case vs Cowen, they will continue to receive $650K cap credit this season & have $750K against their cap next season https://t.co/uQpkqvfYWe
— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) December 7, 2016
The 25-year-old defenseman was acquired by the Maple Leafs in the trade that sent former captain Dion Phaneuf to Ottawa. Cowen played 37 games for the Senators last season before the swap, recording four assists. He did not make an appearance with Toronto due to the hip injury.
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