Quoting: Sidstick87
Why couldn't we afford it??
- Maybe next yr Roslovic or McCann can jump into Top 6 & move Rust or Zucker, especially w/ Poulin coming in??
+ whoever goes in Expansion Draft (MAF)
+ moving a LHD w/ POJ being ready to start next yr??
That is $10-13m of Cap space rite there.
You are working with the assumption that players will be easy to move.
The cap will be tighter next year than it is this year. As it's remaining flat. Even with Seattle coming into the league, there will be less cap next year than this year.
If Seattle spends to cap, it's only opening 2.6 mil per team. Some will get more some will get less.
But the number of RFA's who will be looking for larger deals is going to soak that up. Just about every team in the league has a young player who will need a new deal that will be far more lucrative than what they are getting now. Easily by that 2.6 mil mark.
It does not help that teams and players are pushing off cap hits on 1 year league min deals. What is to be had next year for them?
If you think this year is bad, next year will be worse. Teams are already unwilling to move cap. It will be the same next year. Everyone will be under pressure.
I have them flipping Matheson next year to seattle after he plays better. But the truth is, moving him, and taking Bjugstad off the books, does not look good For Marino, Blueger, ZAR and ZARs deal wil lbe little over league min so there is no point in simply not signing him. But Marino could easily clear 6 million.
This is why they didn't sign any long term deals.
Go look around the league. WSH has Varana and a goalie to sign. Little cap space.
Philly has Hart and Sanheim.
NYR are nothing but RFA including their starting goalie.
NYI aren't that bad but there isn't a lot of cap space there coming off the books to begin with.
NJ one of the few teams in the league with cap space. But they are hamstrung by ELCs coming due on players like Hughes and Zacha if he is to be a core player for them. Maybe they don't pay them. But if they do large chucks of that cap are gone and they are more likely to look toward FA than trade to improve as it's cheaper.
CBJ will have Savard and Bjorkstarnd...but they can't spend cap due to the nightmare year the year after. 1 year deals is the best they could do.
CAR Svechnikov and Hamilton..
That's just the metro where more cap is expected than what is going out on most teams.
The whole league shifted like 3 years ago to getting younger and faster. All those contracts are starting to come due. They can't throw out the old cap money fast enough and the cap isn't going up.
Next year is going to be a wild off season. Not because of huge spending but the exact opposite. Most teams simply won't have cap space. They built teams expecting like 3 mil per season raises. That's 6 mil of cap not there now per team at the least. The rosters aren't made for that. You see that here. Imagine what 6 mil in cap would mean for this team next offseason. It's basically we got marino easily and can easily sign Blueger. Instead, Blueger is going to be looking at a league min deal most likely while Marino takes the cap.
This team will be in free fall is Seattle doesn't take a huge cap it.