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A deep look at the Colorado Avalanche’s salary cap situation as the team heads into training camp

The Colorado Avalanche could face a serious cap crunch if Gabe Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin return to the ice. In that situation, the Avs would need to find a way to remain cap compliant, forcing the club to make some tough choices.

By Nestor Quixtan

The Colorado Avalanche could face a serious cap crunch if Gabe Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin return to the lineup.
The Colorado Avalanche could face a serious cap crunch if Gabe Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin return to the lineup. / Tyler Schank/Clarkson Creative/GettyImages
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The Colorado Avalanche are in an enviable position salary cap-wise. According to PuckPedia, the Avs have a little over $2 million in available cap space. The club has room to add a low-cost player such as Pierre-Edouard Bellemare who has joined the team on a PTO.

While the Avalanche’s cap situation may seem solid, there’s far more beneath the surface. In fact, the return of one or two players could derail the Colorado Avalanche’s entire cap structure.

So, let’s take a closer look at where the Avalanche’s cap situation stands as training camp is set to open.

Taking a deep dive into the Colorado Avalanche's potential cap crunch

The Colorado Avalanche’s cap situation as it stands

As mentioned earlier, the Avs have a touch over $2 million in available cap space. That cap space is there because two high-priced players are not on the roster.

Let’s start with Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog. Landeskog has been on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) for the past two seasons. As per PuckPedia, Landeskog has a $7 million cap hit. However, at this point in time, Landeskog’s cap hit is on the Avs’ books.

Technically, players cannot be placed on LTIR during the offseason or preseason. Players can only go on LTIR once the season officially begins.

The Avs could get an extra $7 million worth of cap space by placing Landeskog on LTIR prior to the season’s opening. As of now, the Avs don’t need to do that. The club can ice a full roster without placing Landeskog on LTIR.

But if the club wanted to, they could add therefore $2 million in current cap space plus Landeskog’s $7 million, totaling $9 million. However, that situation could change if Landeskog returns to the ice (more on that in a moment).

Then, there’s Valeri Nichushkin. Nichushkin was suspended without pay for at least six months back in May, as he entered the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. Allegedly, the suspension stemmed from a substance violation.

Whatever the case, Nichushkin’s situation actually subtracts his salary from the Avs’ cap structure. PuckPedia shows Nichushkin’s cap hit as -$6.13 million. Unlike LTIR, a suspension removes the cap hit from the team’s books.

In contrast, LTIR actually allows the team to exceed the cap. So, if the Avs max out the cap at $88 million and then place Landeskog on LTIR, that would allow the Avs to bump up to $95 million. This provision is included in the cap rules as the entire point of LTIR is to allow teams the flexibility to replace a player when he’s out for more than 10 games or 24 calendar days during the regular season.

However, Nichushkin’s situation is treated like he’s not even on the team. But like Landeskog, things could get dicey if Nichushkin returns.

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