Canadiens Overage Bonuses Will Impact Salary Cap Next Season

The Montreal Canadiens are in a rather complicated salary cap situation.

If you’d like to get a complete breakdown of the situation, you can check out our in-depth article regarding the funds they have available, the reasons their salary cap situation is not ideal, and how they can alleviate some of the cap pressure.

Overages

On top of having to reserve funds for the last year of the Karl Alzner contract buyout, the Canadiens will also have to pay out $1.17 million in 2022-23 bonuses, which will be included in their salary cap expenditures next season.

They’re one of the top three teams that are on the hook going into next year, though they’re far removed from the $4.5 million the Bruins are slated to pay.

We've confirmed that 15 teams will incur a performance bonus overage penalty next season due to players earning bonuses this season!

Shown is a summary with each teams overage, ranging from $4.5M (BOS) to $20k (STL, WSH) 👇https://t.co/3B8UOBLIyt pic.twitter.com/ulg8wCTJNN

— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) May 4, 2023

Habs Angle

In total, the Canadiens have eight bonuses on the docket.

Cole Caufield is the main driving force behind the overages, hitting three different bonuses despite undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery in January.

He will be paid $212,500 for every achievement, having reached the agreed-upon number of goals, time on ice, and points per game during the third and final year of his entry-level contract.

Therefore, his bonuses account for $637,000 of the salary cap next season.

It’s also worth noting Sean Farrell ended up playing more than five games, which led to a relatively paltry $25,000 bonus.

Kaiden Guhle, who was thrown to the wolves while also enduring a baptism by fire and possibly a third idiom haven’t thought of yet, will receive a well-deserved $212,500 bonus due to his elevated time on ice (TOI).

Jordan Harris also qualified for the TOI bonus and will receive the same remuneration as Guhle ($212,500). Seeing as he played 10 or more games, he’s due for an additional bonus of $82,500. The total includes his $25,000 bonus for playing five games or more.

However, as noted by the fantastic folks who run CapFriendly, the Canadiens could end up losing a little more cap space if Harris is named to the All-Rookie Team.

It’s unlikely Harris qualifies for the bonus, but the accolade would cost the team another $212,500 and push the team’s overage to $1.382 million rather than just $1.17 million.

All Salary Cap Information Via CapFriendly.