NHL salary cap rising to record $104M for 2026-27 season

The NHL's salary cap will reach a record of $104 million per team in 2026-27, the league and the NHL Players Association announced Thursday.

That figure is an increase of $8.5 million (8.9%) from the 2025-26 cap.

The salary cap floor will be $76.9 million, making the midpoint $90.4 million. To demonstrate the rapid growth of the league, the minimum is higher than the ceiling was in 2018.

Per PuckPedia, seven teams exceeded the cap in 2025-26, led by the Vegas Golden Knights, who spent $107.49 million. Teams may use players' salaries that have been placed on long-term injured reserve and exceed the cap without penalty.

The youthful Chicago Blackhawks spent $82.35 million, which was still comfortably over the salary cap floor.

Moreover, television and streaming deals with ESPN and TNT Sports will help the league exceed $7 billion in mixed currency revenue this season. The NHL just enjoyed record viewership milestones for the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.

"It's a really good time, and we don't even have the biggest markets (involved in the playoffs)," league commissioner Gary Bettman said recently in an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. "This is about how good the hockey is."

The individual player maximum will also increase to $20.8 million for 2026-27.

Current projections indicate an even larger increase in 2027-28, with a $9.5 million jump to $113.5 million.

--Field Level Media