Last fall in my Foxsports.com column I wrote about the NHL teams which could face potential salary cap problems if next season's cap were to drop below the current level of $56.7 million.

As the recession deepens and concerns grow over its impact upon all professional sports leagues, I think it's worth a quick revisit to determine which teams could find themselves strapped for cap space next season.

Cap statistics courtesy of NHLNumbers.com and NHLSCAPcom:

Boston Bruins: 14 players signed, $42,645,833.

Buffalo Sabres: 14 players signed, $41,188,690

Calgary Flames: 15 players signed, $42,649,167

Carolina Hurricanes: 16 players signed, $46,566,667

Colorado Avalanche: 13 players signed, $42, 075,000

Detroit Red Wings: 14 players signed, $41, 216, 666

Edmonton Oilers: 17 players signed, $43, 495, 833

New York Rangers: 9 players signed, $41,158,810.

Ottawa Senators: 18 players signed: $44, 038,996

Philadelphia Flyers: 19 players signed: $45, 940,833

Pittsburgh Penguins: 13 players signed, $47, 610,000

San Jose Sharks: 13 players signed, $46,750,834

Toronto Maple Leafs: 17 players signed, $44, 523,333

Washington Capitals: 14 players signed, $42,471,796

Now of course some of these numbers could change by season's end as some teams could be dumping salary between now and the end of June, freeing up more cap space.

As things now stand, roughly half of the NHL's 30 teams could find themselves with limited cap space to re-sign key players and bid competitively for next summer's free agents should the cap essentially flatline.

Some might not be in much difficult if the bulk of the players to be re-signed or replaced are checking forwards, fifth and sixth defensemen and backup goalies. Others however could be facing crucial decisions which could have a significant impact upon their rosters for next season.

If the salary cap were to drop significantly, say to $50 million, more than a few of the above could find themselves in trouble.