Salary Cap Set for 2014-15 Season

Gentlemen, start your calculators. The NHL salary cap for the 2015-16 season has been set.

The salary cap will increase to $71.4 million next season, with the floor rising to $52.8 million. The cap will be a little lower than projected, which puts a few teams in dire straits.

Gary Bettman — (Gary A. Vasquez-US PRESSWIRE)

That’s just a slight bump from the $69 million cap the league had in place for the 2014-15 season. As Frank Seravalli noted on Twitter, this is the second smallest season-to-season cap increase since the cap was instituted.

This could be the starter pistol for a week of re-signings and trades culminating in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft on Friday and Saturday, leading into the July 1 opening of free agency. GMs will have a better sense of what they’ve got to work with and cap-strapped teams will have a better sense of how much salary they need ship out the door.

Teams like the Flyers, Blackhawks, Canucks, Bruins, Lightning, Kings, Rangers, Blue Jackets, and Canadiens are all above $63 million in committed cap prior to July 1 free agency. Meanwhile, the Ducks, Jets, Capitals, Flames, Devils, Sabres, Predators, and Coyotes are all under the floor. The Coyotes in particular are in a remarkable situation, with only $34.7 million committed to contracts for next season. Don Maloney’s phone may be ringing off the hook.