On Saturday Chris Kreider and the Montreal Canadiens agreed to a one-year contract. Kreider is guaranteed $2.15 million, with up to an additional $3.25 Million in signing bonuses.
On September 9th, the Anaheim Ducks put Chris Kreider on waives for the purpose of contract termination. Kreider had one year left on his 7 year/$45.5 million contract. This decision by Ducks' General Manager Pat Verbeek was made to clear cap space. "We needed to create salary cap flexibility... this accomplishes that", said Verbeek. The Ducks were put in a salary cap jam after matching Leo Carlson's offer sheet that made him the highest paid player in NHL history. This left the Ducks with a hair over $10 million in cap space, with RFA Cutter Gauthier seeking a big contract.
Last off-season, the New York Rangers traded Chris Kreider to the Ducks after he had a career low in points. Kreider bounced back, having his 8th consecutive 20 goal season, and reaching 50 points. In the postseason, Kreider recorded 2 goals and 5 assists in 12 games. Kreider is now 35 years old and is going into his 15th season in the NHL.
Chris Kreider has been a controversial player in Montreal for over a decade. In game one of the 2014 Eastern Conference Finals, Kreider crashed hard into Canadiens' super star goalie Carey Price, sidelining him for the rest of the postseason, and contributing to his ongoing knee problems.