Équipe: 2023-24 Kings de Los Angeles

Date de création initiale: 11 févr. 2023

Publié: 14 févr. 2023

Mode - plafond salarial: Basique

(1) Note that I have 14 forwards and only 6 defensemen. This is to illustrate a point, as will be shown. (Grundstrom or Anderson-Dolan might be pushed out by Alex Turcotte, whose cap hit is $894,167.)

(2) I've given Rasmus Kupari and Jaret Anderson-Dolan slightly more than their Qualifying Offers, but Tobi Bjornfot the minimum.

(3) Note that there is almost $3.7 million in cap space; for those who might be interested, Jordan Spence's cap hit is less than Brandt Clarke's.

(4) Note that if Cal Petersen plays in Ontario next season, there would be an additional $1.125 million in cap space.

(5) Now imagine that Los Angeles trades for Jake McCabe at 25% ($1 million) or even 50% ($2 million) retention. (I've chosen the latter here.) Assume that the acquisition cost doesn't affect the basic math of this roster -- say, the 2024 first and one or two prospects. McCabe would play opposite Matt Roy. (I put him on the LTIR list to keep the starting point of this analysis clean and clear.)

(5) Note that $1.7 million would still remain in the bank -- $2.8 million if another goalie were to be acquired and used instead of Cal Petersen.

(6) Note that we can afford to acquire any LhD with a cap hit of up to $3.5 million without undue stress or further action. We could even absorb Jakob Chychrun's $4.6 million cap hit simply by running a 22-man roster.

Bottom line: No, we DON'T need to panic-dump Cal Petersen with Quinton Byfield or Brandt Clarke or even Alex Turcotte or a first-round draft pick because we're "up against the cap" or we "have to get rid of his $5 million contract" or for any other uninformed and factually unfounded reason.

This ignorant nonsense has got to stop.

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