Quoting: gmgb
There's just no real upside for NSH to re-acquire Weber. Remaining on LTIR like he presumably will doesn't hurt them. If Weber retires, it doesn't make a difference to NSH if he does so as a Hab or a Pred. NSH can't artificially keep Weber on LTIR if he doesn't merit it. MTL can't do much to compel Weber to retire prematurely, in hopes of extorting NSH.
Perhaps you aren't aware of the ramnifications?
Nashville currently has a penalty of about $24M.
If Weber retires with 1 year left on his contract, they will have a cap penalty of up to $7.8M until 29/30.
However, if they hold his contract and he retires with 1 year remaining, that penalty will be reduced by roughly $4.8M next season, and up to $6.8M for each subsequent season, therefore avoiding the penalty entirely by 24/25 (check my math, posting this quickly
). Recalculate for each year remaining on his contract if he retires sooner.
Avoiding a cap penalty from 2026 to 2030 is absolutely a benefit for Nashville.