Pretty sure if he retires there is a very minor cap recapture penalty for 2 years. I think just under a million.

Recapture penaties affect front loaded contracts, Weber being the most severe(If he retires) and Luongo. Buff's is minor front loaded so as EthanK24 indicted , not much of a recapture.

If he just ‘steps away’ they are stuck right?

If he retires, there should not be any as he is under 35...Lou and Weber have it as their contracts end in their 40s...

recapture penalties were only for those nonsense contracts that were signed before the 2012 lockout. If he retires his cap will just be off the books.

Unless he has a serious injury and doesn’t want to leave $14 million on the table, the Jets would probably get most of his contract off the books.

The "35" rule applies to WHEN a player a player SIGNS the contract. (such as Marleau). Buff, Lou and Weber are free of the 35 rule. Weber would be hit with major "recapture" rule due to the heavy front load of contract. Same applied to Lou. Buff just a minor cap hit due to his relatively small front end load.