The salary cap will probably increase this summer, but that might change when the NHL and NHLPA agree on a new CBA. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman wants GMs to take a “business as usual” approach until the league has a new CBA, but will they?
It’s worth noting that several teams have already locked up some of their unrestricted free agents to big extensions over the past couple of months. Ales Hemsky, Tuomo Ruutu, and Mikhail Grabovski have all signed extensions that will reportedly come with annual cap hits in the $4.75 million to $5.5 million range, and those three players aren’t putting up star caliber numbers this season. So it’s still safe to say that GMs will spend this summer, but they might practice a little more restraint than they would have under normal circumstances.