Written with the help of artificial-intelligence tools and checked by automated controls.
This content was machine-translated from the French version.
The NHL salary cap is set at $104 million for the 2026-2027 season, an increase of nearly 9% from the $95.5 million of the previous fiscal year. Mechanically, the maximum individual player salary allowed rises to $20.8 million per year. A sum that was science fiction when Leon Draisaitl signed for $14 million in 2024. Now, the question is no longer whether a player will cross this threshold, but which one will get there first.
Kaprizov opened the breach
On September 30, 2025, Kirill Kaprizov redrew the pay scale by signing for $17 million per season with the Minnesota Wild.
On September 30, 2025, Kirill Kaprizov redrew the pay scale by signing for $17 million per season with the Minnesota Wild. The Russian winger, then 28 years old, was coming off a 108-point campaign capped by a second Hart Trophy. Before him, no one had exceeded the $14 million given to Draisaitl. With a single contract, Kaprizov shattered a psychological ceiling and demonstrated to agents that the $15 million mark was now a floor for the absolute elite.
The five-year deal, shorter than the maximum then allowed, also heralded the spirit of the new collective bargaining agreement. The maximum length of extensions drops from eight to seven years. Top players prefer shorter commitments to renegotiate more often in a market that television rights—like the massive contract signed with Prime Video for Wednesday night hockey in Canada—continue to inflate.
Bedard, Makar, McDavid: who will hit $100 million?
Connor Bedard, 21, will be a restricted free agent in the summer of 2027. The Blackhawks center is already stacking seasons above a point per game and single-handedly carries Chicago's rebuild. A $100 million contract over five years, or $20 million per season, would be the logical starting offer for an extension. The NHL has never seen a nine-figure pact. Bedard could be the first.
Cale Makar, two-time Norris Trophy winner, currently earns $9 million in Colorado. His contract also expires in 2027. At 27, the Avalanche defenseman will be the most coveted free agent of his generation. Finally, Connor McDavid, tied to Edmonton until 2028, could negotiate an early extension as soon as next summer. The hypothesis of a contract flirting with $20 million for the best player on the planet is not extravagant, even if he will be approaching his thirties.
A prosperity at two speeds
The $104 million cap reflects insolent economic health, but it accentuates an internal fracture. The minimum salary caps at $850,000. When Kaprizov pockets $17 million, an undrafted rookie will earn fifty times less to play in the same league. General managers in Columbus or Winnipeg watch this runaway with a mix of admiration and dread: building a competitive roster when three players can aspire to a combined $45 million turns into an acrobatic budget equation.
The new collective bargaining agreement tried to stem the phenomenon by limiting contract lengths, but the remedy remains marginal. The real shift will come when the median salary—currently around $3 million—finally follows the superstars' curve.
In less than twelve months, Bedard and the Blackhawks will begin their negotiation. Chicago already knows it will have to put a record check on the table to secure the face of its rebuild. The NHL is preparing to see the $100 million mark fall. Not once, but several times.