NHL Announces Salary Cap for 2016-17 Season: Details and Reaction

The NHL announced a $73 million salary cap and a $54 million salary floor for the 2016-17 season on Tuesday, per SB Nation's Travis Hughes. 

Sportsnet's Chris Johnston noted the cap is increasing from last season's $71.4 million threshold mostly because of the NHL Players' Association's "decision to enact [a] 5 percent growth factor."  

ESPN.com's Pierre LeBrun explained that if the NHLPA had opted for a 2.5 percent growth plan, the cap would have remained flat. 

Sportsnet Stats on Twitter offered an overview of how the cap has grown since the start of the 2013-14 season: 

News of a cap increase—no matter how slim it may seem—is good news for teams pressed for cash flow this summer.

According to Spotrac, teams like the Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins, Montreal Canadiens, Columbus Blue Jackets, Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings are all projected to have less than $10 million to spend. 

Conversely, the Arizona Coyotes lead a pack of four teams with more than $25 million in projected cap room: 

Team	Projected Cap Space
Arizona Coyotes	$40,055,794
New Jersey Devils	$30,916,193
Carolina Hurricanes	$26,166,668
Buffalo Sabres	$25,777,926

With the draft scheduled to get underway Friday and free agency slated to begin July 1, the slight influx of cash should help inject the offseason with even more intrigue as teams get ready to finalize their spending plans in advance of a hectic few weeks.