Pardon my ignorance, but will they have cap space even after LTIR to sign Nurse and trade for a big $$ D-Man? Wouldn't the Nurse signing be more important at this time?
No they wouldn't. If they had 4m in cap space, it would be a waste to put Sekera onto LTIR, as he only gives Edmonton cap space to exceed the cap by the amount that that contract puts them over the cap. So if Edmonton was 4m under the cap, it would be an utter waste to put Sekera onto LTIR, as that would only gain Edmonton 1.5m in cap space. Which means prior to putting him onto LTIR, Edmonton needs to be right up against the cap to gain maximum cap space.... and the only way that's going to happen is if they acquire another D to fill Sekera's role/spot or if they sign Nurse.
LTIR is a funny thing . Take the players cap hit and divide it over 82 games . Every game he is out you can exceed the cap by that amount . In Sekera case 5.5 million divided by 82 = 67,000,00 a game . You can not bank his savings , you can not use his savings to pay bonuses . You can only exceed the cap by the 67,000 a game until he return . So it will not be that easy to do . Of course this is assuming there are any bonuses made
They only get to do that if they're maxed out at the very upper limit. If they're under the cap, they lose out on the cap space they already have/had. Which is why GMs try to get as tight as possible to the cap before they put someone on LTIR... so that they get the most cap relief possible.
Sekera's full cap hit is counted when he returns though.
I'm just saying that Chia doesn't have to wait until the regular season starts to sign Darnell and trade for a D-man.
The Oil can go 5.5 mil over until then.
A) Yeah that's the tough part. Having 5m+ in cap space is great to bring in a replacement... but if the guy on LTIR isn't out for the entire season, you have to worry about who you're going to trade to make room to get under the cap.
B) Only if they're tight against the cap before putting Sekera on LTIR.