Sabres will be closer to salary cap than many think

Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR Sports Radio 550) - After coming to terms on a new two-year contract with forward Beck Malenstyn on Tuesday, the Buffalo Sabres have two more restricted free agents to still get under contract.

NHL arbitration hearings go through Aug. 4, and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen is reportedly scheduled to have his hearing on July 29.

Malenstyn was scheduled for a hearing as well, but he and the Sabres agreed on his two-year contract beforehand. It's possible Luukkonen could do the same.

Peyton Krebs doesn’t have arbitration rights.

Many are hung up on how much the Sabres will spend this offseason and, to me, it doesn’t make any difference whatsoever. To me, it’s who the players are.

Spending to the cap doesn’t matter if you have the wrong players in place.

The year Buffalo used $8 million to sign winger Taylor Hall, they were right up against the salary cap, and where did that get them?

The other thing that some aren’t thinking about is next season, this team will need to sign the likes of Jack Quinn, JJ Peterka, Bo Byram and Devon Levi. You have to have space for that to happen.

Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams could spend to the cap with one-year contracts just to satisfy some people, but to what end?

I have the Sabres around $13.4 million under the salary cap, at this time. I would guess Luukkonen will take between $4.5 million and $5 million of that with his new contract. Krebs might get around $1 million.

That means at the end of the day, they wouldn’t be that far under the cap.

As far as money actually being paid out, owner Terry Pegula will spend just over $4.6 million more than the salary cap figure. Part of that is because Rasmus Dahlin this season will make $2 million more than his $11 million salary cap figure.

Skinner will also count $1.44 million against this season’s salary cap.

Here are the players on my salary cap that I think will make up the 23-man roster this year:

Forwards:

Peterka – Thompson – Tuch
Benson – Cozens – Quinn
Greenway – McLeod – Zucker
Malenstyn – Lafferty – Aube-Kubel
Krebs

Defense:

Dahlin – Power
Byram – Jokiharju
Samuelsson – Clifton
Gilbert – Bryson

Goalies:

Luukkonen – Levi