With Matt D’Agostini joining Greg Stewart, Kyle
Chipchura, and Guillaume Latendresse as players who have signed for less than
they earned last season, the Habs have a bit more flexibility than many expected
after their UFA shopping spree in July. With that in mind, just how
much space do they have left on the money tree? Read on to find out.
Now that everyone is under contract, we can break the salaries down
by where they could potentially fit on the depth chart. Players may not
necessarily be in their correct position for illustrative purposes. Note: All figures are rounded to the nearest dollar.
|
Forwards |
|
Left Wing |
Centre |
Right Wing |
Total Salary |
|
A. Kostitsyn ($3,250,000) |
Gomez ($7,357,143) |
Gionta ($5,000,000) |
Line 1 ($15,607,143) |
| Cammalleri ($6,000,000) |
Plekanec ($2,750,000) |
D’Agostini ($500,000) |
Line 2 ($9,250,000) |
|
Latendresse ($803,250) |
Lapierre ($687,500) |
Moen ($1,500,000) |
Line 3 ($2,990,750) |
| Chipchura ($500,000) |
Metropolit ($1,000,000) |
Laraque ($1,500,000) |
Line 4 ($3,000,000) |
|
Spares: S. Kostitsyn |
Total forward cap hit: $32,164,560
If you’re wondering where Max Pacioretty is, he’s been sent to Hamilton
for this particular instance due to roster restrictions – the max is 23 and he’d
be the 24th.
|
Defence |
|
LD |
RD |
Total Salary |
|
Markov ($5,750,000) |
Spacek ($3,833,333) |
Pairing 1 ($9,583,333) |
| Hamrlik ($5,500,000) |
Gorges ($1,100,000) |
Pairing 2 ($6,600,000) |
|
Mara ($1,675,000) |
Gill ($2,250,000) |
Pairing 3 ($3,925,000) |
|
Spare: O’Byrne ($941,667) |
Total defence cap hit: $21,050,000
Considering the starting 6 defencemen are
all LH shots, they could all be interchanged at this point in terms of what side
they’re listed as playing.
|
Goalies |
|
Price |
Halak |
Total goalie cap hit:
$2,975,000
Let’s total it all up now – I’ll
put it in a few different scenarios to illustrate what could happen potentially:
Note: Add the bonus cushion to the base cap space to get a total potential
cap space figure.
Scenario 1: As shown above: $56,189,560 ($610,440
under the cap with a 23-man roster before a potential bonus cushion of $1,615,000).
Scenario 2: Pacioretty stays, S. Kostitsyn to Hamilton: $56,282,893
($517,107
under the cap with a 23-man roster before a potential bonus cushion of $1,350,000).
Scenario 3: Pacioretty, S. Kostitsyn stay, one of Chipchura, D’Agostini,
or Stewart to Hamilton: $56,599,560 ($200,440
under the cap with a 23-man roster before a potential bonus cushion of $1,615,000).
Scenario 4: Pacioretty, S. Kostitsyn both to Hamilton: $55,372,893
($1,427,107
under the cap with a 22-man roster before a potential bonus cushion of $1,350,000).
It should be noted that all 3 of the players potentially being sent down in
Scenario 3 must clear waivers to make it to Hamilton which may very well impact
the organization’s decision here. If the Habs want to ensure that they’ll
have some extra space in case of injury and/or midseason acquisition, Scenario 4
may be the most likely, as both Pacioretty and S. Kostitsyn are exempt from
waivers; however, the latter is only exempt for a small window.
As I’ve been doing all offseason, I’ll adjust these projections if/when another
move is made before the season begins.