According to Friend Of The Blog James "James Mirtle" Mirtle, Jared Cowen and the Leafs are disputing whether or not he's injured--and if he's injured, Cowen cannot be bought out.

According to Bob Mackenzie, the Leafs have now missed the first buyout window.

There's a lot at stake for both sides here--Cowen stands to lose $3,000,000 in real dollars if bought out, which looks all the more enormous considering his future NHL career is very much in doubt. The Leafs, on the other hand, save that much in real dollars, as well as a whopping $3.750M against the cap this year, if the buyout goes through.

YEAR CONTRACT SALARY DUE CONTRACT CAP HIT BUYOUT COST BUYOUT SAVINGS BUYOUT CAP HIT
2016-17 $4,500,000.00 $3,100,000.00 $750,000.00 $3,750,000.00 -$650,000.00
2017-18 - - $750,000.00 -$750,000.00 $750,000.00

Somewhat infamously, the Leafs declined to play Cowen upon acquiring him, not wanting to risk damage to their cap-related meal ticket. Cowen was vocal about his disappointment with the decision--and asserted that he felt healthy enough to play, with potential consequences for this dispute. Stay tuned, sportsfans.

Update: Elliotte Friedman has chimed in with more info.

Stay staying tuned.