Flat cap and MacKinnon due a MONSTROUS raise..."it's a no from me dawg"

We can trade Kuznetsov in 2023, when his NTC only features a 10 team no trade list, and when he'll have 2 years remaining.

No need (IMO). Johnson either goes elsewhere after his deal or takes a massive pay cut. That alone should mostly pay for Mack.

We'll also have Byram and Kaut though, maybe others too (eg. Timmins if he's bridged).

I think Timmins will be affordable, and same with Kaut and Bowers. The team is deep enough that it's doubtful they tear it up and demand huge raises when they're under team control. Byram will most likely get a bridge (IMO) and will also have a tough time getting a Makar type contract since he'll be second banana behind Cale. And Newhook shouldn't be up until the following year. Hopefully there is some significant cap movement by then. If not, there are levers to pull (Kuznetsov, or whoever the team acquires, would be one of them).

Honestly, the guy I'm most worried about popping and needing a big raise is Jost. I hope he does because I like the kid and it would be a good problem to have, but his bridge isn't going to extend past this three year flatish cap period. It could make things tough if he starts scoring like I think he can

Either way, too many good players is a nice problem to have. Hopefully we get to that point.

Caps decline.

Good point on the bridges. I think that's a strategy we could see Sakic adopt from 2023 onwards in order to maximise the cup window, similar to how Tampa does it.

Interesting thought about Jost. I hadn't really thought about the long-term implication of him doing well. But as you say it would be nice if he did do well as that would give us an avenue to pick up some good ELC's/futures. He could even replace Burakovsky and make Bura expendable. Good options to have either way.

That doesn't get you Kuzy. Also Mack is due for a massive raise.