The Canes placed defenseman David Tanabe and center Jeff Hamilton on waivers Monday with the intention of buying out their contracts.

Additionally, Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford said the team has been unable to reach an agreement with forward Darcy Hordichuk, whose free-agent rights the Canes obtained from the Nashville Predators on Thursday.

The Canes traded a fifth-round draft pick in 2009 for Hordichuk's rights; they will receive a fifth-round pick in 2010 if they do not sign the rough-and-tumble winger. He will become an unrestricted free agent next Tuesday.

"The fact that we had tried to get a jump on it and he wasn't interested in what we had to say, it would appear we're not getting him," Rutherford said.

Hamilton signed a two-year, $1.6 million contract with the Canes in the opening hours of free agency last July 1; Tanabe signed a two-year, $1.5 million contract two games into the season last fall.

The buyouts will cost the Canes two-thirds of the remaining value of each contract -- $600,000 for Tanabe and $533,333 for Hamilton -- and a salary cap charge of $416,667 in 2008-09 and $566,667 in 2009-10. Tanabe is scheduled to make $900,000 this season and Hamilton $800,000.

Tanabe's situation remains murky, as it has for the past six months. Tanabe missed the final 49 games of the season after sustaining a concussion on Dec. 18, and injured players cannot be bought out.

"I believe it is an issue, but I need to do some more background before I really comment on anything," Neil Sheehy, Tanabe's agent, said Monday.

After returning to practice on Jan. 2 -- at the time, he called it a "small victory" -- he suffered a recurrence of his symptoms and hasn't been seen since.

Tanabe did not attend his scheduled exit meeting with Rutherford after the season, but the Hurricanes say they now consider Tanabe healthy and eligible for a buyout.

"I have not met directly with him," Rutherford said. "Based on the doctor's reports over the last few months and the fact that he has requested to take his equipment home for the offseason, that's the best understanding we have of where he's at."

Hamilton was signed by the Hurricanes as a free agent last summer and got off to a great start manning the point on Carolina's power play with 12 points in Carolina's first 14 games.

But Hamilton's production tailed off -- he had 12 points in his next 44 appearances -- and he cleared waivers and was assigned to the minors in February. A successful late-season recall wasn't enough to keep him in the picture as the Hurricanes look to bulk up on the fourth line.

At 5 feet 10 and 185 pounds, Hamilton isn't a part of that plan. His health may also be an issue -- Hamilton had hip surgery in April.

"We'll end up moving a couple of forwards around and maybe trading one or two forwards, but even with that he's not going to fit," Rutherford said.