NHL salary cap projected to surge to $127.5 million by 2028-29

The NHL is bracing for one of the most dramatic financial jumps of the salary-cap era later this decade. Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman reports the league is projecting a salary cap of $127.5 million USD for the 2028-29 season, signalling just how quickly revenues are climbing across the NHL.

Steep cap growth from 2025-26 through 2028-29

The cap for the upcoming season has been set at $104 million per team, a significant step up from the $95.5-million ceiling in place for 2025-26. Internal league estimates then point to another increase to $113.5 million for 2027-28 before a potential leap to $127.5 million the following year.

If that 2028-29 projection holds, it would represent the largest single-season increase since the NHL introduced the salary cap. Commissioner Gary Bettman recently pegged revenue projections heading into 2026-27 at roughly $8.1 billion in mixed currency, a key driver behind the escalating cap figures.

Maximum individual salary set to climb with the cap

Under the current collective bargaining agreement between the NHL and NHLPA, no player can earn more than 20 percent of the overall salary cap. With the cap at $104 million for 2026-27, the individual maximum sits at $20.8 million per season. Apply that same 20 percent threshold to a $127.5-million cap, and the ceiling for a single player’s annual salary would rise to $25.5 million in 2028-29.

Several marquee names are on track to hit free agency heading into that season and could be positioned for substantial raises if the projections prove accurate. Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Zach Werenski of the Columbus Blue Jackets are among the high-profile players whose next deals would be negotiated in that richer environment.

Recent mega-deals hint at the new marketplace

This past summer already offered a preview of how teams are adjusting to a rising cap. Star players such as Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, Macklin Celebrini with the San Jose Sharks and Leo Carlsson of the Anaheim Ducks signed major contracts that push close to the current maximum range. Carlsson is set to enter the 2026-27 campaign as the league’s highest-paid player.

What looks like sticker shock today may age differently if the cap continues to climb on this trajectory. Recent big-ticket contracts could end up occupying a smaller share of team payrolls, while upcoming negotiations with elite talent will take place in a landscape where general managers have far more room to spend. For now, the only constant is that as NHL revenues rise, salaries are poised to rise with them.