News Article: Salary Cap could fall $1.3M, however Bettman projects $71.5M Cap

[Husko]

Ultimately there will be legal circumvention and clever cap management that will get most of the teams under the cap with their RFAs signed.

Please look at the Blackhawks current contract situation and explain what sort of legal circumvention they can do to sign their RFAs/fill out a roster without shedding significant cap space by the way of trading good players? This isn't the NFL where you can move money around on a contract. Cap hits are pretty darn straightforward and you can't rework them once a deal is inked.

 

[Djp]

Expansion fees go directly and solely to the owners. The players don't get a piece so they're not relevant to the cap AFAIK.

expansion fees do not factor into the salary cap. The fees in essence make up for the teams lost share of the TV money

My prediction is:

2016 LV Expansion
2017 Seattle or OKC Expansion
2018: ARZ to Canada relocation.

I love the irony of Seattle vs OKC.

I take it too close to heart.....OKC---WTF. there are numerous other cities ahead of them in pecking order...

any expansion would be done as 2 teams at the same time entering the league.

 

[TehDoak]

expansion fees do not factor into the salary cap. The fees in essence make up for the teams lost share of the TV money





I take it too close to heart.....OKC---WTF. there are numerous other cities ahead of them in pecking order...

any expansion would be done as 2 teams at the same time entering the league.

OKC already has a stadium built and in place that could handle a NHL team. That's the big difference.

 

[old kummelweck]

Okc?

 

[Sabre the Win]

Okc?

oklahoma city

 

[Jim Bob]

I know Chicago won't want to do it, but I'd call them about Niklas Hjalmarsson.

 

[Revelate]

Backes

That would be an amazing mentor for Eichel

I'd imagine they'd ask for Reinhart.

 

[Heraldic]

I'd imagine they'd ask for Reinhart.

Reinhart for a one year rental?

 

[BakedBuffalo]

Reinhart for a one year rental?

Busts aren't worth much

 

[VaporTrail]

Anyone know if any member of the media has asked Murray if he would go after RFA's ?

 

[Victorious Secret]

Oklahoma City had some of the worst attendance figures in the AHL. Even during the lockout. In that time they got to see Hall, Eberle, and RNH play for them, all at the same time. If you have high talent like that and you can't draw fans, I don't see how giving them an NHL would be better. Many more deserving cities.

 

[Jim Bob]

Oklahoma City had some of the worst attendance figures in the AHL. Even during the lockout. In that time they got to see Hall, Eberle, and RNH play for them, all at the same time. If you have high talent like that and you can't draw fans, I don't see how giving them an NHL would be better. Many more deserving cities.

There are plenty of people in "major league markets" that won't go see a "minor league team".

For instance, the USL Seattle Sounders never had huge crowds. They go to MLS and boom!

I'm not saying that OKC would be a good NHL market. I'm just saying that I wouldn't use AHL attendance as a barometer.

 

[Sabretip]

Compensation for RFA's 14-15

Notable RFA's (using NHLNumbers.com)

Stepan, Derek
Hagelin, Carl
Miller, JT
Fast, Jesper
Silfverberg, Jakob
Etem, Emerson
Del Zotto, Michael
Namestnikov, Vladislav
Boedker, Mikkel
Sustr, Andrej
Kuznetsov, Evgeny
Johansson, Marcus
Bennett, Beau
Spooner, Ryan
Hamilton, Dougie
Galchenyuk, Alex
Saad, Brandon
Kruger, Marcus
Toffoli, Tyler
Shore, Nick
Jones, Martin
Nyquist, Gustav
Jurco, Tomas
Tarasenko, Vladimir

This could be the year we see a number of RFA offer sheets, especially if the cap does go down.

I would think that the three bold-faced are definitely on Murray's radar as targets, either as offer-sheets or trades. Jones may be easier to trade for but I don't see Anaheim or LA being willing to part with Silfverberg or Toffoli unless backed into a financial corner they can't match an offer sheet.

 

[RoofIt5hole]

Please look at the Blackhawks current contract situation and explain what sort of legal circumvention they can do to sign their RFAs/fill out a roster without shedding significant cap space by the way of trading good players? This isn't the NFL where you can move money around on a contract. Cap hits are pretty darn straightforward and you can't rework them once a deal is inked.

Yea the a Hawks biggest problem is that Bickell & his 4.5 mil salary will be almost impossible to move. Sharp is a trade possibility but his major off ice issues could be a deterrent for many teams. And Shaw just sucks.

Basically the guys they'd want to deal to shed salary have minimal value and trading then won't be easy. They could try and trade Crawford but I'm not sure teams are that interested in him to absorb his (I think) 6.5 mil... The only real trade piece they have that had value is Seabrook and I could see him getting shipped to Edmonton. And they'd still be in cap trouble.


(Also it's rumored Quenneville will be showed the door.)

Stan made a real mess.
Worst case, the Hawks could be a lottery team next year. Basically LA this year.

 

[Revelate]

Reinhart for a one year rental?

what do you think they'd ask for?

 

[ikyan]

That 68m calculation does not take into consideration the escalator. Expect a 69-70.5m cap. Very small increase.

 

[joshjull]

That 68m calculation does not take into consideration the escalator. Expect a 69-70.5m cap. Very small increase.

That 68mil is based on the players talking about NOT using the escalator.

 

[Dunkster19]

I know Chicago won't want to do it, but I'd call them about Niklas Hjalmarsson.

He would be my target as well. Chicago has to move some salary for sure. Isles 2nd and we take Versteeg to give them a little more cap relief.

 

[ZeroPT*]

He would be my target as well. Chicago has to move some salary for sure. Isles 2nd and we take Versteeg to give them a little more cap relief.

Hjalmarsson is among one of the best D-men in the league IMO. A sure fire shutdown top pairing guy on a gorgeous contract.

It will be far far more than a pick

 

[tsujimoto74]

I know Chicago won't want to do it, but I'd call them about Niklas Hjalmarsson.

I'd be all over that. Who knows what could happen? Chicago definitely has to move some salary out, and the guys they'd most like to clear are probably going to be pretty tough sells.

 

[Jame]

I'd be all over that. Who knows what could happen? Chicago definitely has to move some salary out, and the guys they'd most like to clear are probably going to be pretty tough sells.

Chicago would trade Seabrook before Hammer

 

[Sabreality]

Chicago would trade Seabrook before Hammer

this. Hammer wont be a 'cap casualty' unfortunately.

 

[Moskau]

Please look at the Blackhawks current contract situation and explain what sort of legal circumvention they can do to sign their RFAs/fill out a roster without shedding significant cap space by the way of trading good players? This isn't the NFL where you can move money around on a contract. Cap hits are pretty darn straightforward and you can't rework them once a deal is inked.

Without having capgeek I can't get too in depth but I can pretty much assure you that Bickell's contract is moveable. Every year we hear about how teams are going to package bad contracts with draft picks to get rid of them and it never happens because the cap is still going up. But in a year when the cap is actually going down I think it may actually happen for a change. There are quite a few teams that are about to start a rebuild or aren't going anywhere this year that would love to add picks wherever they can get them. A team like Toronto that is going to shed Kessel and Phaneuf would gladly take on Bickell if it mean getting back a pick. A team will bail out Chicago because fellow GMs always bail these teams out from their bad contracts. It took very unusual circumstances for Chicago to lose players the first time.

 

[joshjull]

Without having capgeek I can't get too in depth but I can pretty much assure you that Bickell's contract is moveable. Every year we hear about how teams are going to package bad contracts with draft picks to get rid of them and it never happens because the cap is still going up. But in a year when the cap is actually going down I think it may actually happen for a change. There are quite a few teams that are about to start a rebuild or aren't going anywhere this year that would love to add picks wherever they can get them. A team like Toronto that is going to shed Kessel and Phaneuf would gladly take on Bickell if it mean getting back a pick. A team will bail out Chicago because fellow GMs always bail these teams out from their bad contracts. It took very unusual circumstances for Chicago to lose players the first time.

Like what? They had to get rid of players primarily because 4 players were getting substantial raises (Kane, Toews, Keith and Hammer)

 

[Moskau]

Like what? They had to get rid of players primarily because 4 players were getting substantial raises (Kane, Toews, Keith and Hammer)

Like Tallon not correctly submitting qualifying offers which caused him to sign his RFAs to millions more than the should have in 2009 which put Chicago in cap hell for 2010.