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The Tampa Bay Lightning just completed a magical season. Now, they’ll have to work magic with the salary cap to have any chance for a third straight Stanley Cup next year.
They are $3.5 million over the NHL’s $81.5 million salary cap, and more than 50% of their cap space is tied up on four players: Andrei Vasilevskiy, Nikita Kutcherov, Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman.
Several familiar names likely won’t return.
Tyler Johnson, Ryan McDonough, David Savard, Blake Coleman and Barclay Goodrow appear vulnerable. The Bolts also could lose a player in the expansion draft for the new Seattle Kraken.
– Joe Henderson, Extensive Enterprises Media