Colorado Avalanche could run out of cap space to sign their players

The Colorado Avalanche are in a troublesome salary cap position. Per PuckPedia, they have around $2 million of available cap space, allowing them some freedom at the moment to add a low-cost in-training camp player like Pierre-Edouard Bellemare, who came into their training camp on a PTO. Returning players could drastically alter their situation, however.

The $7 million cap hit of Gabriel Landeskog could complicate things; he has been on LTIR for the past couple of seasons. Players can only be placed on LTIR during the regular season, so the Avalanche might just do that again to open up space. That would provide an extra $9 million in total cap space for them, but his return complicates things a bit.

The other factor involved with the cap is the situation with Valeri Nichushkin. He was out due to a substance violation, so his $6.13 million cap hit is off the books, providing some cap relief. The issue arises if he returns mid-season, which could then put Colorado way over the cap.

It is possible that both Landeskog and Nichushkin return, and if that happens the team goes about $4 million over the cap. If so, the Avalanche could have to put a player on LTIR, make a trade, or dress fewer players to get compliant. Injuries will happen, obviously. Players like Nikolai Kovalenko, Chris Wagner, or Jacob MacDonald could be sent down to the AHL, though waiver requirements could arise.

Colorado will need to make an adjustment should both Gabriel Landeskog and Valeri Nichushkin ultimately be ready to return. General Manager Chris MacFarland faces some sticky cap situations, particularly around November when Nichushkin might rejoin the lineup. A trade or some creative maneuvering could well be in store to avoid major salary cap crises this season. Either way, the Avalanche are going to have to make several moves over the season to fix this, so stay tuned.