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Originally Posted by HitterD
Can anyone explain. Please how bonuses effect the salary cap in the new cba? Do they count against the cap right at the beginning or only if they are reached?
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The whole amount counts against the cap, but there is a "bonus cushion" that allows teams to exceed the cap by the amount of any bonuses on contracts, so it doesn't really impact a team's ability to spend to the cap.
Also, in the new CBA, bonuses can't be used to help a team get to the floor, so you can't have a situation like a couple of seasons ago where the Islanders gave Staios a bonus-filled contract where he was unlikely to achieve any of them.
For all intents and purposes, Knight counts as $900,000 against the Flames' cap.
The only concern is if a team is over the cap with bonuses and the player(s) earn the bonuses, any of the bonus money over the cap is taken away from the team's cap the following season. That's really only a problem if a player wins a year-end award or is named to a year-end all-star team (it hurt the Hawks in 2010 when Toews won the Conn Smythe). For a player like Knight, it's unlikely he'll earn much of the bonus money anyway unless he gets a lot of time on the first or second line.