The NHL's salary cap will be between $81.5 and $82 million for the 2019-20 season, according to The Associated Press.
Commissioner Gary Bettman projected during the NHL Board of Governors meetings in December that the current $79.5-million cap would increase to $83 million.
The lower-than-expected number will result in added difficulty for teams trying to re-sign key players and fill out their rosters while already facing limited cap space.
The cap is calculated as a percentage of the league's revenue from the previous season.
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