Bruins buy out Hayes, put bow on one of the worst trades ever

The Boston Bruins placed forward Jimmy Hayes on waivers for the purpose of a buyout Friday, putting a bow on one of the worst trades in recent memory.

Hayes is coming off an abysmal year in which he put up just five points (2-3) in 58 games while averaging less than 10 minutes per night despite making $2.3 million against the cap. With another $2.6M owed to him next season this was a logical move for the Bruins, who will only be hit with a cap penalty of $566,667 next season and $866,667 in 2018-19.

Don Sweeney will gladly wipe his hands clean of this deal, which was one of the first moves he made as GM after taking over for Peter Chiarelli in May 2015.

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Hayes, a Boston native, was acquired from the Panthers on July 1, 2015 in exchange for Reilly Smith and Marc Savard’s contract. Smith, as you recall, was one of the pieces the Bruins received in return for Tyler Seguin.

With Hayes no longer on the team, the Bruins are officially left with nothing to show for Chiarelli’s decision to trade a 21-year-old second-overall pick who scored 67 points in his sophomore season.

Here’s what the final score looks like:

Boston’s haul

Loui Eriksson: Had a 63-point campaign in 2015-16 but was largely a disappointment in Boston as the centerpiece of the deal. He’s coming off a dreadful season after signing a big-money contract with the Canucks last summer.

Reilly Smith: Made a strong first impression with a 51-point campaign in 2013-14, but took a step back the following year due to a dip in his shooting percentage. The Panthers flipped him to Vegas last week for a fourth-round pick.

Joe Morrow: The Bruins declined his qualifying offer this week after the 2011 first-rounder failed to blossom in Boston.

Matt Fraser: Was claimed off waivers by the Oilers in December 2014, currently playing in Sweden.

Dallas’s haul

Tyler Seguin: Only four players have put up more points than Seguin since he joined the Stars in 2013-14.

Rich Peverley: Nearly matched Eriksson’s production in the first year after the trade before being forced into retirement due to an irregular heartbeat.

Ryan Button: Bounced between the AHL and ECHL, currently playing in Germany.

It might not be the worst trade in NHL history, but it could be up there by the time Seguin is done running up the numbers in Dallas.

Along with Hayes, Mike Cammalleri (NJD), Devante Smith-Pelly (NJD), Jussi Jokinen (FLA), Mark Stuart (WPG), Lance Bouma (CGY) and Ryan Murphy (CGY) were also bought out on Friday.