The benefit of the cap increase gives flexibility to all teams (albeit Arizona, Carolina, and even Edmonton refusing to spend up to the cap this year). So although many teams benefit from the breathing room (especially those with anticipated new costs, eg: Edmonton) I think that a jump in the salary cap most affects those teams with pending UFAs who hope to retain a player in line for a raise. These players jumped out at me after a quick glance at the UFA list:
Marchessault VGK - 25p in 24GP. Current Cap Hit: $750,000
Stone OTT - 25p in 26GP. Current Cap Hit: $3,500,000
Tavares NVI - 31p in 27GP. Current Cap Hit: $5,500,000
Maroon EDM - 16p in 28GP. Current Cap Hit: $1,500,000
Backlund CGY - 18p in 28GP. Current Cap Hit: $3,575,000
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