NHL salary cap to increase to $104 million in 2026-27

The NHL salary cap will climb to $104 million subsequent season — an $8.5 million increase.

Teams have been knowledgeable of the brand new figures for the 2026-27 season by the NHL and NHLPA on Wednesday. Per the collective bargaining settlement, will increase are calculated primarily based off the prior 12 months’s financials in joint Hockey Related Revenue.

Starting subsequent season, the utmost salary for a participant shall be $20.8 million. The NHL’s highest-paid participant is ready to be Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizovwhose $17 million per 12 months extension kicks in subsequent season.

The salary cap flooring shall be $76.9 million in 2026-27.

The increase was not shocking to groups, because it matches the league’s projections. However it is one other promising signal for hockey’s development.

The NHL simply had its most-watched first spherical of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

“It’s a really good time, and we don’t even have the biggest markets. This is about how good the hockey is,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman mentioned Wednesday throughout an look on the Pat McAfee Show.

Bettman credited the rise of worldwide hockey between Four Nations and the Olympics, and in addition mentioned he believes the viral present “Heated Rivalry” introduced new followers to the game as nicely. Above all, the commissioner credited how aggressive and thrilling the video games have been as what’s drawing eyeballs.

“When you mush it all together, because it’s never one thing, that’s how you can account for it,” Bettman mentioned.