The NHL informed teams that the salary cap for the 2026-27 season will rise to $104 million, according to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman.
The increase aligns with the league's previous projections and is a notable jump from the $95.5-million limit this season.
Teams will have to spend a minimum of $76.9 million to reach the salary-cap floor, while the maximum player salary (20% of a team's payroll) will be $20.8 million, Friedman notes.
As it stands, the highest cap hit in the league next season belongs to Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov, who signed a record-setting $136-million ($17-million annual cap hit) extension last September.
Although teams across the league will have more flexibility this offseason, the 2026 free-agent class isn't expected to inspire a spending spree. Alex Tuch, Sergei Bobrovsky, and Darren Raddysh are among the most prominent players set to hit the open market this summer.
