Don't think he did manage to the cap here: he could throw caution to the winds - sign Hossa for a $5MM cap hit - because Toews, Kane, Keith, Seabrook, Hjalmarsson, Niemi, Sharp - all were on cheap contracts. Only Hossa, Huet, Campbell had big cap hits. The QO fiasco cost them something on the cap hit, but not enough to push them up against it. The big cap hits came into effect last year.

He did build a cup winner here, but he was lucky that his star were young and either on entry-level contracts or cheap second contracts - didn't have to juggle contracts to stay below the cap.
- StLBravesFan

I don't think it's just throwing caution. He does have a talent for selling a franchise to players. Having the team here did help on Hossa. But it was also the team he built. Didn't have that when he inked Campbell who was the most sought after FA in the market. And we will never know what he would have done post Cup and who he would have dealt. He didn't get the chance. We gave that job to the great Stan Bowman. Seems to have been a sound decision...