NHL Cap Expected To Rise, But Not All Teams Plan On Spending

Burke Says Not All NHL Teams Will Keep Spending To Salary Cap

The NHL salary cap is expected to rise from $44M to $47-48M next season, “but there might not be a rush by all NHL teams to increase their payrolls by that amount,” according to Kevin Allen of USA TODAY. NHLPA Exec Dir Ted Saskin “estimated the cap increase for next season based on revenue projections; [NHL] Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly called that a ‘fair estimate.’” This season, 25 of 30 teams have cap numbers within $4M of the $44M ceiling. Under the CBA, teams must spend within $16M of the ceiling, and Daly said, “If the cap continues to grow, I believe you will start to see teams start to use the ‘range’ more than you're seeing this year — less teams right at the cap.” Ducks Exec VP & GM Brian Burke said “not all markets can afford to keep” increasing payroll. This season’s lowest-spending team, the Capitals, are $13M below the ceiling (USA TODAY, 2/23). In a separate piece, Allen writes the “reason the cap is expected to rise is that league revenues are rising, but [Sabres Managing Partner Larry] Quinn speculates much of the increased revenue will come from local ticket sales, meaning only some markets benefit.” Quinn: “One market will be able to afford the increase easily, and in another market it would be a significant imbalance” (USA TODAY, 2/23).