The rising salary cap and an offer sheet have skewed the top of the NHL’s salary list toward younger players.
Columbus Blue Jackets forward Adam Fantilli’s signing on Thursday, Sept. 24, to a six-year, $82.5 million contract ($13.75 million average) means that three of the top five cap hits this season belong to the top three draft picks of 2023.
Advertisement
In the past, teams could keep down the salaries of players coming out of their entry-level deals because they lacked arbitration rights. But the Philadelphia Flyers changed that with a five-year, $90 million offer sheet ($18 million cap hit) to Leo Carlsson.
The Ducks matched, and Chicago’s Connor Bedard ($15 million average), Fantilli and Anaheim’s Cutter Gauthier ($13.5 million) benefitted.
So did San Jose Sharks No. 1 overall 2024 draft pick Macklin Celebrini, who will top Carlsson with an $18.8 million average, starting in 2027-28. And Colorado Avalanche veteran defenseman Cale Makar became the NHL’s first $20 million player with his eight-year extension.
Washington’s Ryan Leonard received an eight-year, $92 million extension after playing one full season with 45 points.
Advertisement
“I’ll definitely be giving (Carlsson) a tap on the shins this year, maybe,” Leonard told reporters. “It’s fun to see the market and it’s nice to see the NHL is slowly creeping up on some other sports.”
Here’s a look at the highest-paid NHL players by cap hit, salary and position (figures from puckpedia.com):
Highest-paid NHL players in 2026-27 by cap hit
Note: Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar will average $20.4 million and Sharks center Macklin Celebrini will average $18.8 million, starting in 2027-28.
▶ Top 50 plus ties
-
C Leo Carlsson, Ducks, $18,000,000
-
LW Kirill Kaprizov, Wild, $17,000,000
-
C Elias Pettersson, Canucks, $11,600,000
-
D Cale Makar, Avalanche, $9,000,000
-
D Jackson LaCombe, Ducks, $9,000,000
Highest-paid players in 2026-27 by salary
▶ Top 30 plus ties
Advertisement
-
C Leo Carlsson, Ducks, $20,800,000
-
LW Cutter Gauthier, Ducks, $19,501,405
-
LW Kirill Kaprizov, Wild, $19,100,000
-
C Jack Eichel, Golden Knights, $17,700,000
-
C Connor Bedard, Blackhawks, $17,000,000
-
C Leon Draisaitl, Oilers, $16,500,000
-
C Adam Fantilli, Blue Jackets, $16,000,000
-
G Igor Shesterkin, Rangers, $15,850,000
-
RW Alex Tuch, Capitals, $15,700,000
-
LW Kyle Connor, Jets, $15,000,000
-
C Connor McDavid, Oilers, $14,250,000
-
C Martin Necas, Avalanche, $14,000,000
-
RW Mitch Marner, Golden Knights, $14,000,000
-
LW Pavel Dorofeyev, Rangers, $14,000,000
-
C Logan Cooley, Mammoth, $13,000,000
-
D Thomas Harley, Stars, $13,000,000
-
C/RW William Nylander, Maple Leafs, $12,500,000
-
C Nathan MacKinnon, Avalanche, $12,150,000
-
D Noah Dobson, Canadiens, $12,000,000
-
D Evan Bouchard, Oilers, $12,000,000
-
C Adrian Kempe, Kings, $12,000,000
-
LW Jason Robertson, Stars, $12,000,000
-
LW Artemi Panarin, Kings, $12,000,000
-
RW David Pastrnak, Bruins, $11,250,000
-
RW Mikko Rantanen, Stars, $11,250,000
-
C Auston Matthews, Maple Leafs, $11,080,000
-
D Drew Doughty, Kings, $11,000,000
-
D Rasmus Dahlin, Sabres, $11,000,000
-
C Elias Pettersson, Canucks, $11,000,000
Highest-paid defensemen in 2026-27 by cap hit
Note: Makar will average $20.4 million and Blackhawks defenseman Bowen Byram will have a $12.5 million cap hit, starting in 2027-28.
▶ Top 30 plus ties
-
Erik Karlsson, Penguins, $11,500,000
-
Drew Doughty, Kings, $11,000,000
-
Rasmus Dahlin, Sabres, $11,000,000
-
Thomas Harley, Stars, $10,587,000
-
Evan Bouchard, Oilers, $10,500,000
-
Zach Werenski, Blue Jackets, $9,583,334
-
Seth Jones, Panthers, $9,500,000
-
Charlie McAvoy, Bruins, $9,500,000
-
Adam Fox, Rangers, $9,500,000
-
Noah Dobson, Canadiens, $9,500,000
-
Darnell Nurse, Sharks, $9,250,000
-
Roman Josi, Predators, $9,059,000
-
Dougie Hamilton, Devils, $9,000,000
-
Jakob Chychrun, Capitals, $9,000,000
-
Cale Makar, Avalanche, $9,000,000
-
Jackson LaCombe, Ducks, $9,000,000
-
Luke Hughes, Devils, $9,000,000
-
Lane Hutson, Canadiens, $8,850,000
-
Darren Raddysh, Maple Leafs, $8,500,000
-
Jacob Trouba, Sharks, $8,250,000
Highest-paid goaltenders in 2026-27 by cap hit
▶ Top 30
-
Igor Shesterkin, Rangers, $11,567,857
-
Thatcher Demko, Canucks, $8,500,000
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who are the NHL’s highest-paid players for 2026-27? See the full breakdown
Read the full article here