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The 10 Worst Contracts Handed Out By NHL Local Teams Over Last Decade

By Daniel Friedman
» More Columns

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The NHL free agency frenzy kicked off Tuesday, and there was enough money thrown around to end world hunger. But sometimes, general managers and owners act irresponsibly with their wallets.

Here are 10 such instances in the last 10 years where that has happened to the Rangers, Islanders and Devils:

10. Josh Bailey, Islanders

 

Josh Bailey
The Islanders' Josh Bailey, left, celebrates his shorthanded goal against the Devils with Kyle Okposo at the Prudential Center on Sept. 19, 2013 in Newark. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

The Isles signed Bailey to a five-year, $16.5 millioncontract extension that just kicked in this past year. He's still very unproven and has yet to amass more than 38 points in a season.

9. Brad Richards, Rangers

 

Brad Richards
Brad Richards of the New York Rangers skates against the Philadelphia Flyers at Madison Square Garden on April 20, 2014. (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images)

I think the idea of bringing him to New York was a good one in theory, but the price tag (nine-year, $58.5 million) was just too high. He never quite panned out, either and was bought out after the Stanley Cup Finals.

8. Ryane Clowe, Devils

 

Pittsburgh Penguins v New Jersey Devils
Ryane Clowe of the New Jersey Devils celebrates a goal scored by teammate Michael Ryder. (Photo by Paul Bereswill/Getty Images)

Clowe signed a five-year, $24.25 million deal with the Devil (sorry, couldn't resist) and so far it's been more hellish for the New Jersey side than for his. Even at his most productive, he's being paid way too much.

7. Bryce Salvador, Devils

 

Adam Henrique #14 and Bryce Salvador #24
Adam Henrique #14 of the New Jersey Devils celebrates his second goal of the game against the Carolina Hurricanes with teammate Bryce Salvador #24 at Prudential Center on March 8, 2014 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

Got a massive raise after his postseason performance, one that he has yet to justify since. He'd be a third-pairing defenseman on a good team, but the Devils are paying him more than $3 million per year.

6. Travis Zajac, Devils

Travis Zajac
Travis Zajac (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

The Devils extended Zajac last summer, to the tune of eight years and $46 million. He'll make $5 million this season and $6.5 million next season. Considering he had just 48 points in 80 games last season, that's ... something.

5. Anton Volchenkov, Devils

Anton Volchenkov
Anton Volchenkov (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

Volchenkov was a massive flop in Jersey. After signing a six-year, $25.5 million contract in 2010, he proved to be slow and incredibly irresponsible in his own zone, nor did he do enough of what made him a hot commodity in the first place -- hitting. The Devils bought him out this summer.

4. Scott Gomez, Rangers

In 2007, the Blueshirts signed Gomez to a seven-year, $51.5 million deal and he rewarded them with one good season and a mediocre follow-up season. General manager Glen Sather managed to turn this into a major plus, however, when he dealt Gomez to Montreal in a trade that sent Ryan McDonagh to New York.

3. Chris Drury, Rangers

He was signed to a five-year,$35.25 million deal in 2007. See above (minus the trade part).

2. Wade Redden, Rangers

The big defenseman was signed to a six-year, $39 million deal in 2008 -- at the ripe young age of 31. You just can't make this stuff up, folks.

1. Rick DiPietro, Islanders

 

Rick DiPietro
Rick DiPietro. (Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

As good as DiPietro likely would've been if not for the injuries, no one is worth a 15-year, $67.5 million investment. And if you think the contract itself was insane, consider that it started a league-wide trend. That's simply unfathomable.

For more on the NHL, please follow Dan on Twitter at @DFriedmanOn NYI

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