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Here are several tables of National Hockey League team payrolls for each team in the NHL. For simplicity, players traded mid-season are considered to be on the payroll of the team acquiring that player.
League
After the 2004–05 season was cancelled, a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) was agreed upon between the NHL and the NHL Players' Association. This CBA included a salary cap for team salaries (formally defined in the CBA as the "Upper Limit"), which would potentially increase from one season to the next depending on league revenues,[1] and a cap for player salaries, set at 20 percent of the team salary cap.[2] The teams also have a minimum payroll requirement (formally defined as the "Lower Limit"), which was $21.5 million in 2005–06,[3] but fixed from 2006–07 onward at $16 million below the salary cap.
From the 2003–04 season to the 2005–06 season, the implementation of the salary cap caused a marked normalization of team payrolls, and a decrease in the payroll disparity from team to team. Ten teams (of thirty) decreased their payrolls by more than $15 million, with four decreasing their payrolls by more than $30 million; only seven teams increased their payrolls, with four increasing their payrolls by more than $5 million. The standard deviation of the payrolls decreased from $15,898,399 to $6,371,263 after the salary cap was introduced.
| Year | Average team payroll | % change | Standard deviation | Team cap | Player cap | Number of teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998–99 | $29,730,833 | – | $7,375,757 | No cap | 27 | |
| 1999–2000 | $31,564,167 | 6.17% | $9,963,577 | 28 | ||
| 2000–01 | $33,375,943 | 5.74% | $11,657,873 | 30 | ||
| 2001–02 | $38,011,852 | 13.89% | $14,162,670 | |||
| 2002–03 | $41,939,715 | 10.33% | $16,876,630 | |||
| 2003–04 | $44,400,490 | 5.87% | $15,898,399 | |||
| 2004–05 | Season canceled due to lockout | |||||
| 2005–06 | $34,309,972 | -22.73% | $6,371,263 | $39,000,000 | $7,800,000 | |
| 2006–07 | $40,292,446 | 17.44% | $4,720,484 | $44,000,000 | $8,800,000 | |
| 2007–08 | $44,369,521 | 10.12% | $7,573,225 | $50,300,000 | $10,060,000 | |
| 2008–09 | $51,387,176 | 15.82% | $7,968,239 | $56,700,000 | $11,340,000 | |
| 2009–10 | $52,772,060 | 2.69% | $5,541,890 | $56,800,000 | $11,360,000 | |
| 2010–11 | $54,229,043 | 2.76% | $6,758,459 | $59,400,000 | $11,880,000 | |
| 2011–12 | $58,862,833 | 8.54% | $5,563,110 | $64,300,000 | $12,860,000 | |
| 2012–131 | $35,004,146[4] | -40.53% | $60,000,000 | $12,000,000 | ||
| 2013–14 | $56,975,964[5] | 62.77% | $64,300,000 | $12,860,000 | ||
| 2014–15 | $60,863,476[6] | 6.82% | $69,000,000 | $13,800,000 | ||
| 2015–16 | $59,173,968[7] | -2.78% | $71,400,000 | $14,280,000 | ||
| 2016–17 | $64,132,129[8] | 8.38% | $73,000,000 | $14,600,000 | ||
| 2017–18 | $63,315,723[9] | -1.27% | $75,000,000 | $15,000,000 | 31 | |
| 2018–19 | $66,636,112[10] | 5.24% | $79,500,000 | $15,900,000 | ||
| 2019–20 | $81,500,000 | $16,300,000 | ||||
| 2020–21 | ||||||
| 2021–22 | 32 | |||||
| 2022–23 | $82,500,000 | $16,500,000 | ||||
| 2023–24 | $83,500,000 | $16,700,000 | ||||
| 2024–25 | ~$87,700,000 | ~$17,540,000 | ||||
1Season shortened by the 2012–13 NHL lockout; teams could spend up to $70.2 million, pro-rated for the season's length.
Between the 1998–99 and 2007–08 seasons, the total players' payroll was $9,990,698,194, which is an average of $37,700,748 per team per season. The division with the highest total payroll over this nine-year period is the Atlantic Division, paying out $1,912,252,452 ($42,494,499 per team per season). The division with the lowest total payroll over this period was the Southeast Division; it was considered the weakest hockey market in the league, as one of its teams (the Atlanta Thrashers) relocated prior to the 2011–12 season.[11]
Teams in the Southeast Division have had a home attendance above the league average for a given year only six times:
- Carolina Hurricanes: 17,386 in 2006–07 (league average of 16,957); won the Stanley Cup that year
- Tampa Bay Lightning: 17,820 in 2003–04 (league avg. 16,533) – won the Stanley Cup that year
- 20,509 in 2005–06 (league avg. 16,954)
- 19,876 in 2006–07 (league avg. 16,957)
- 18,692 in 2007–08 (league avg. 17,308)
- Washington Capitals: 17,341 in 2001–02 (league avg. 16,759)
Prior to the dissolution of the Southeast Division after the 2012–13 season, teams in that division frequently had average attendance numbers in the bottom ten in the league for a given year:
- Atlanta Thrashers (have been in the bottom ten every year between 2000–01 and 2007–08; relocated to Winnipeg in 2011–12)
- Carolina Hurricanes (2000–01, 2001–02, 2003–04, and 2005–06)
- Florida Panthers (2000–01, 2006–07, and 2007–08)
- Tampa Bay Lightning (2000–01)
- Washington Capitals (2000–01, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07, and 2007–08)—with total payrolls of $1,180,291,667 ($32,377,083 per team per season).
The team that spent the most on players' salaries over these nine seasons are the New York Rangers, who spent a total of $517,076,928 for players, averaging $57,452,992 per season.[12][13] The Detroit Red Wings have the second highest total payroll over this period, with $483,801,165, for an average of $53,755,685 per season.[13][14]
The Nashville Predators had the lowest payroll per season over the same period, totalling $218,136,880 ($24,237,431 per season),[13][15] followed by the Atlanta Thrashers with a total of $212,616,075 ($26,577,009 per season).[13][16] The absolute lowest payroll belongs to the Minnesota Wild, who joined the league in 2000–01. In the seven seasons since the Wild joined the league, they have the lowest total payroll, at $187,278,126 ($26,754,018 per season).[17] Nashville's payroll over this period was slightly higher, at $187,936,880 ($26,848,126 per season).[15]
The Calgary Flames held the unique distinction of being the only team to have increased their payroll every year between the 1998–99 season and the 2007–08 season.
Sergei Fedorov, Paul Kariya and Jaromir Jagr have each had the highest salary on three different teams between 2000–01 and 2007–08:
- Sergei Fedorov: Anaheim Ducks (2003–04), Columbus Blue Jackets (2005–06, 2006–07), Washington Capitals (2007–08)
- Paul Kariya: Anaheim Ducks (2000–01, 2001–02, 2002–03), Nashville Predators (2005–06), St. Louis Blues (2007–08)
- Jaromir Jagr: Pittsburgh Penguins (2000–01), Washington Capitals (2001–02, 2002–03, 2003–04), New York Rangers (2005–06, 2006–07)
Eastern Conference
| This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: Data needs to be updated through 2019–20 season. (December 2019) |
Metropolitan Division
The Metropolitan Division currently has the highest total player payrolls of any division in the league as of the end of the 2018–19 season. Its predecessor division (which was known as the Atlantic Division between 1993 and 2013) had the highest total player payrolls of any division between 1998–99 and 2007–08, paying out $1,912,252,452 to its players ($42,494,499 per team per season). The New York Rangers were the highest paying team in the Atlantic Division (and in the entire league) over this period, with a player payroll of $517,076,928 ($57,452,992 per season),[12][13] while the Pittsburgh Penguins are the lowest paying team in the division over these nine seasons, with total payrolls of $260,515,726 ($28,946,192 per season).[13][18]
Carolina Hurricanes
These are the salaries for the Carolina Hurricanes.
| Year | Team payroll | % change | Median salary | Top paid player(s) | Highest salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998–99 | $28,600,000 | ||||
| 1999–2000 | $27,100,000 | -5.24% | |||
| 2000–01 | $32,473,250 | 19.83% | $612,500 | Ron Francis | $5,000,000 |
| 2001–02 | $31,994,900 | -1.47% | $859,750 | Ron Francis | $5,000,000 |
| 2002–03 | $33,131,287 | 3.55% | $700,000 | Ron Francis | $5,936,287 |
| 2003–04 | $35,908,738 | 8.38% | $750,000 | Rod Brind'Amour | $5,000,000 |
| 2005–06 | $35,308,700 | -1.67% | $1,000,000 | Doug Weight | $5,700,000 |
| 2006–07 | $38,970,800 | 10.37% | $1,250,000 | Rod Brind'Amour Erik Cole Eric Staal |
$4,000,000 |
| 2007–08 | $49,948,600 | 28.17% | $2,200,000 | Eric Staal | $4,500,000 |
Columbus Blue Jackets
These are the salaries for the Columbus Blue Jackets. The team played its first season in 2000–01 and was in the Western Conference between the 2000–01 season and the 2012–13 season.