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For a second consecutive season, the Montreal Canadiens could find themselves with more than $8 million in unused cap space on opening night.

The cap situation is a flash point for disgruntled fans. It’s time to look at why money is burning a hole in Marc Bergevin’s pocket, and what it means to the Canadiens now — and in the future.

Let’s start by dismissing the notion that the Canadiens have become a penny-pinching, bargain-basement team that doesn’t want to spend the money because that $8 million bolsters the bottom line for Geoff Molson and his partners.

The Canadiens are one of the most profitable operations in the National Hockey League and, during Molson’s tenure, the team has always spent up to the cap. If anything, there has been criticism that the team has been too generous with some of its contracts.

The situation over the past two years has been an anomaly.

There was money left over last summer because Bergevin botched the negotiations for Alex Radulov and Andrei Markov. Taking Bergevin at his word that he offered Radulov the same deal he signed in Dallas, the reality is that the tax differential between the two cities dictated a higher offer from the Canadiens.