Why Blackhawks Need to Be ‘Very Smart' About How They Utilize Cap Space

Why Hawks need to be 'very smart' about utilizing cap space originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago

For the last three seasons, the NHL's upper limit of the salary cap has stayed at $81.5 million because of the financial ramifications stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic. Next season, the ceiling will increase for the first time since 2019 but only by $1 million.

The lack of salary-cap growth has made teams become much more frugal when it comes to how they spend their money, and we saw it again this season. Of the 32 teams in the league, 19 of them finished the regular season with fewer than $1 million in available cap space. 

The Blackhawks were one of those teams, and they're looking to free themselves up in the future as they embark on a rebuild.

"Flexibility is a really important aspect of us moving forward," GM Kyle Davidson said. "I don't want to go out and take on a quote-unquote 'bad contract' if it puts us in a tough spot just because we get an asset. I think we have to be very smart and understanding what that could do to us moving forward.

"We don't want to be put in a corner, because cap space goes so quickly and it's so hard to get that flexibility back. I don't want to give that up if it's not the right situation, and so we'll be mindful of that and react accordingly based on the different situations that are presented to us. But from my perspective, I would like to have a little bit of flexibility."

Because of that desire to have financial flexibility, the Blackhawks are going to be extremely calculated with their roster construction, which, in the near future, includes making a decision on pending restricted free agents such as Dominik Kubalik and Dylan Strome, the latter of whom has earned a raise. Kirby Dach is also a pending RFA who will likely sign a bridge contract before earning a larger payday down the road.

"It definitely goes into the conversation, for sure," Davidson said. "Any time a player is due for a raise or a new contract, you have to be looking not just for the next season but for the seasons moving forward. That definitely goes into the decision-making process when it comes to any RFA or UFA or player you're going to bring in or contract you're going to sign."

The Blackhawks have finished with fewer than $1 million in cap space for three straight years and have basically been flirting with the ceiling since 2010. Really, the only time in the last decade they've finished with significant cap space was the 2018-19 season when they had $4.6 million left over.

Eventually, the Blackhawks want to get a point again where they have a ton of cap space to use on their up-and-coming star players as they did during their Stanley Cup runs, while also having the ability to go out and sign marquee free agents like Chicago did with Marian Hossa in 2009. And that process begins now.

"We've been in a situation for so long that we've had none," Davidson said. "It would be nice to have some and really be able to dictate how we use our budget and use our salary cap dollars from a strategic standpoint rather than just being reactive to it. So that's kind of the goal moving forward."

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