CAP"onmics"

[wjag]

If I was GM for a day, I would send Mair down and keep Stafford in Buffalo.

 

Unfortunately, the team is now being financially penalized by injuries as the price per day of calling up replacements counts against the CAP number.

 

I didn't pay attention to any of the nuiances of the CAP, but this seems to have severely restricted the moves a team can make with their farm club.

 

Are the Sabres the only team in this position? Think about it. If we need to bring talent up for game day replacements, and the Sabres only have 90k to start the season with, how the heck are teams suppose to compete? By March, I would imagine the 90k would/could be gone. What happens then?

 

Should teams be required to leave a reserve in the piggy bank before the season starts? If so, how much?

 

The Ducks gave a D-MAN 7M. How the heck can you sign 22 players if you are giving out 4-7M for some positions and are limited to a mid-40k number and you need to leave some for replacements?

[Bmwolf21]

IIRC, there is a max any team can give any one player, which is tied the salary cap number (one player can't exceed a pre-set % of the team's total payroll.) It's supposed to prevent superstar players from blowing up the salary structures of both their team and their competition.

 

This gives teams their choice - pay a couple players the max, and fill out with younger (read: cheaper) players, and hope they are ready to contribute; or do what teams like Buffalo have done - not blow the bank (purposely) on a couple players, instead, spread the wealth among the team's core, and use interchangeable parts for role players.

 

All that said, I think the Sabres (with the arbitrators' help) painted themselves into a corner with their salary structure this year. Depending on whether TC comes back, it's definitely possible that the Sabres may have to make some sort of cap relief trade at some point this year.

[inkman]

I believe the max a player can earn is 20% of the cap.