NHL Free Agency Rumors: How a Salary Cap Increase Would Benefit the Rangers

In a conference over the weekend, Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said that the salary cap could go up as high as $63.5 million, and that will increase at least $1.1 million to $60.5 million per year.

The potential increase was explained in a report printed by the Montreal Gazette:

“The cap is based on hockey related revenue which included a number of salivating agents, that the NHL is expecting to post record revenue of close to $3 billion for the 2010-11 season. That's an increase of more than $200 million from the previous season. 

"Since the CBA was reached after the 2004-05 lockout, league-wide revenues have increased by $750-800 million and the cap has increased by more than $20 million a team”

The New York Rangers currently have about $19 million dollars in cap space. Most of this money would go towards signing restricted free agents like Ryan Callahan, Brandon Dubinsky, Artem Anisimov, Brian Boyle and Michael Sauer.

It is expected that between $10-$12 million dollars could be spent in retaining the majority of their free agents. This would leave the Rangers with $7 million to $9 million dollars in cap room to pursue their main priority Brad Richards.

Over the past few weeks since the Rangers' elimination from the postseason, many writers, myself included, have crunched the numbers trying to find the team as much space as possible. Buyouts of players like Chris Drury, Wojtek Wolski and Sean Avery have also been discussed.

A significant increase in cap space would allow the Rangers to retain a few of the aforementioned players.

A maximum cap increase of up to $63.5 million dollars would give the Rangers just about $23 million dollars in salary cap relief. This would be the best-case scenario but any increase will greatly benefit the Rangers more than most teams in the league.

The New York Post reported that the projected cap will average out to be $62.2 million next season.

The Rangers have two widely documented needs. They need a top line center and a puck moving defensemen. It is speculated that the goal of GM Glen Sather is to acquire Brad Richards’ rights at the NHL Entry Draft next month.

By doing this, Sather would have some time to negotiate with Richards and show him the big picture.

This key one-on-one time would be a major plus to the prospect of Richards coming to Broadway. It is speculated Richards wants a big money contract.

However, he has not opened his mouth in regards to anything financial. Richards is coming off a big deal so he isn’t exactly starving financially. He may only seek a $6 million dollars per year deal for a length of five years. If this were the case, the Rangers could be more flexible when it comes to signing a defenseman.

Other news in the NHL could also potentially help the Rangers this offseason.

Many outlets based out of Detroit have reported that Brian Rafalski will be addressing his future in the NHL. It is anticipated that he will announce his retirement. Rafalski is a world-class player, a three-time Stanley Cup winner and two-time Olympic silver medalist.

This would set off a chain reaction that affects all free agent defensemen. Rafalski was set to make $6 million this upcoming season. By walking away, teammate Nicklas Lidstrom has less bargaining power when it comes to negotiating.

Lidstrom, despite his age, is looked at as one of the premier defensemen in the league.

If Lidstrom is not going to get a big money deal, it could drive down the asking price for all defensemen on the market. This includes but is not limited to Ed Jovanovski, Bryan McCabe, Andrei Markov, Roman Hamrlik, Eric Brewer, Tomas Kaberle, Kevin Bieksa, Christian Ehrhoff and countless others.

While most of this is speculation, it is definitely plausible to occur.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, an increase in the overall salary cap would result in the floor minimum increasing significantly. This would really hurt small market teams like Dallas, Atlanta/(Winnipeg?) and Phoenix, all of whom coincidentally have shaky ownership.

We won’t know anything until an official announcement is made but all we can do now is sit back and continue to watch the exciting NHL Stanley Cup Playoff hockey.

Comments, Questions, Concerns?

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