NHL/NHLPA announce Salary Cap increases for the next 3 seasons (2025-26: $95.5M, 2026-27: $104M, 2027-28: $113.5M)

[OilersFanatics505]

No one would take Landy (who hasn't played since game 6 of the Cup year) over Rants.

If he’s healthy enough to come back the Avs don’t have a choice…

Something something, people bitching about taxes incoming… that’s amazing luck that’s gonna fall into their laps.

 

[Menzinger]

Great news for most teams.

The cheaper ones will have to start paying up, or being creative trading for guys with higher aavs than what their actual salaries are

A good situation for a GM looking to dump a bad contract

 

[SirSamofHouseBennett]

3 predictions for the new cap world

1. I think both players & league will agree to term limits in next CBA. The stars will benefit from 5 years with higher AAV and then another 5 while still in demand and the owners don’t have to lock up non stars/declining for so long

2. McDavid will get 20m cap. If you take the average of these 3 years cap and then apply the max 20% cap, you get 20.8m. If he takes 20m he can claim to be under market value.

3. Another expansion on the horizon. Much of the cap growth is fueled by the success in Vegas, Seattle and the shedding of Arizona, now in Utah. The players & the owners won’t be able to say no and indeed the owners have a fiduciary duty to grow revenues as their obligation in the Partnership with the players.

1 more prediction
4. Trades will be harder as teams at the floor won’t want to take on salary and won’t be able to give up salary.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Much of the cap growth is fueled by the success in Vegas, Seattle and the shedding of Arizona, now in Utah.

Actually not really true, as the pie just gets divided up further.
Let’s pick any number for the average revenue of teams in the league , let’s say that is $160 million,

If Vegas is $20 million over $160 and Seattle is $12 million over. That’s $32, players get half of that, so a net increase on the cap of 1/2 million.

If Vegas $40 million over the average and Seattle $24 million over average, that’s a 1 million increase on cap roughly.

That’s not taking into account of pensions, benefits etc. that aren’t included.

 

[SirSamofHouseBennett]

Actually not really true, as the pie just gets divided up further.
Let’s pick any number for the average revenue of teams in the league , let’s say that is $160 million,

If Vegas is $20 million over $160 and Seattle is $12 million over. That’s $32, players get half of that, so a net increase on the cap of 1/2 million.

If Vegas $40 million over the average and Seattle $24 million over average, that’s a 1 million increase on cap roughly.

That’s not taking into account of pensions, benefits etc. that aren’t included.

Sure that’s direct revenue but you are not calculating the increase in Gambling revenue channels and the larger footprint impact on broadcast/streaming income.

Thanks for the feedback!

 

[Golden_Jet]

Sure that’s direct revenue but you are not calculating the increase in Gambling revenue channels and the larger footprint impact on broadcast/streaming income.

Thanks for the feedback!

Gambling revenue is totally different than what I commented on, your point is below, which isn’t the same thing.

Much of the cap growth is fueled by the success in Vegas, Seattle and the shedding of Arizona, now in Utah.

 

[ToDavid]

Says the Leafs fan.

Not everyone is a fan of a big market team that the League bends over backward to please (and still fails to get much of anything done!).

I don’t even know what this is supposed to mean.

 

[ToDavid]

That is your own prerogative so speak for yourself only. Some other fans like to dig into details a bit more. Many fans on these boards are GM pretenders. Let them be.

To clarify, I’m not talking about fantasy GMing, or digging into contract details or CBA details, I’m 100% for that. It’s something I find very interesting. Saying “I don’t care” was probably not the right wording.

I meant specifically the people who assign some morality to it. Like you have “side” with either the players or the owners in contact negotiations. That’s silly to me.

 

[wolfgaze]

Last time I bought a car the salesman said it was a steal of a deal!

You know how our society feels about trusting the word of a car salesman

Honestly, it's just another way to say good value? Guess I could've said that.

That wording seems fine to me and an appropriate way to describe a contract. You'll notice how describing the contract in that manner doesn't convey that the deal agreed upon was strongly lopsided in favor of the organization nor imply that the players agreed to a contract that doesn't compensate them fairly for their services. It's my personal pet peeve when using HFBoards to come across so many posts describing contracts as an 'absolute steal!' when the players merely signed for like $250K to $750K less than some fans were expecting them to.

Realistically speaking, if a player is being undercompensated by like 5-10% of their perceived value then that doesn't translate to a lopsided contract that isn't compensating the player fairly for their services (especially when that's the level of compensation the player personally agreed upon when signing their long term deal). Some players can be the type of individuals who would rather sacrifice their max value in earnings in order to secure a preferred employer and living location. So when players sign for less than fans were expecting - it doesn't imply that a player agreed to a deal that doesn't compensate them fairly. I feel NHL players would be annoyed/miffed if someone ever tried to convince them that they agreed to sign a long term contract that doesn't compensate them fairly for their services.

 

[PlayMakers]

Instead of increasing the cap by $20m two years from now, they should institute a rule that requires teams to start the season with a $5m cushion (or a 5% cushion).

The cap is still $113.5, but you have to start the season with a roster that costs 108.5 with $5m in cap space and maintain it for the first month.

I think this rule would bring back regular season trades and dramatically increase how many trades are made. Think about how fast $5m in cap space would accrue. In the amount of time it would take you to evaluate your team, you'd have $8m in cap space. By the deadline, some teams would have $25m in cap space. It would really take the handcuffs off and allow teams to pull out of tailspins by making deals and addressing needs earlier in the season.

 

[Mr Hat]

The one thing I don't like is this.

The owners get paid, the players get paid and us, fans have to pay for what is honestly a deteriorating product.

There's honestly a very good chance I'm not attending a game live anymore unless I win tickets to it.

Cool instead you can make another 35,000 posts on a forum instead. Can’t beat the game experience even if it’s expensive. Worse things to spend your money on.

 

[snipes]

Rantanen to the Oilers

 

[NHL Dude 120]

Great news for most teams.

The cheaper ones will have to start paying up, or being creative trading for guys with higher aavs than what their actual salaries are

A good situation for a GM looking to dump a bad contract

Tbh I'd like to see the salary floor be at least 80% of the cap. No excuses for players not to get paid and owners being cheap.

 

[Folignos Helmet]

Twin 7 x 16M contract offers to Marner and Rantanen from Chicago incoming.

 

[KrisLetAngry]

Yea the cap is going to get ridiculous.

 

[psycat]

But why?

 

[BB79]

NHL announces prices will be going up

 

[ThePhoenixx]

They really think profits gonna rise that quickly?

The cap was kept artificially low because the players were paying the owners back for Covid losses.

 

[Bank Shot]

Definitely good news for the Oilers.

Yesh. Those deals for guys like Hyman and RNH keep looking better. Good contracts looking even better.

 

[SirSamofHouseBennett]

Gambling revenue is totally different than what I commented on, your point is below, which isn’t the same thing.

Much of the cap growth is fueled by the success in Vegas, Seattle and the shedding of Arizona, now in Utah.

Yes and I am saying Vegas itself being in the nhl has ushered in significant gambling revenue to the central league revenue.

 

[Golden_Jet]

Yes and I am saying Vegas itself being in the nhl has ushered in significant gambling revenue to the central revenue

Allowing gambling in the league is not because Vegas has a team, it’s because the league went from a no gambling league to a gambling one.
This is not Vegas knights revenue , it’s league revenue,
sports gambling is allowed in about 40 states, not just Vegas. Mobile gambling is allowed in 30+ states, plus the provinces that allow it.

 

[VivaLasVegas]

NBA teams have a much more fair and flexible salary cap that allows teams to spend their way out of bad situations.

Maybe they should avoid these situations in the first place?

Yes and I am saying Vegas itself being in the nhl has ushered in significant gambling revenue to the central league revenue.

How much exactly and your source?

 

[golfortennis1]

NHL announces prices will be going up

They will only go up if demand exceeds supply.

How did the "a salary cap will lower ticket prices" schtick work out from 20 years ago?

You want lower prices, stop paying these prices, or demand more teams. Even 1 more team in the GTA will kill the Leafs' monopoly power.

 

[ElLeetch]

Seems ridiculous to have the cap go up that much that quickly. Didn't the NBA do that and it caused problems?
You'd think they'd want to keep it lower and eliminate the possibility of escrow.

maybe the NHL should not have been holding it back so much all these years then

 

[Greatzsky 99]

I mean TV rights deals typically dont decrease so yea, the next TV deal is likely to be bigger than the current one.

Well they usually aydont, but if you think of NHL situation in US that hasnt always been the case.
I was referring to the talk about how awful the deal has been to Rogers according to countless posts
i have read over the years, all based on, as far as i have seen opions, no data.
So this new deal, will tell if the old one was awful ok or good.