Report: NHL salary cap could increase up to $9M for 2025-26

The NHL and NHLPA will discuss the possibility of increasing the salary cap by between $7 million and $9 million for the 2025-26 season, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported on Hockey Night in Canada's "Saturday Headlines."

The salary cap can rise a maximum of 5% each year under current CBA rules but can increase by a larger margin if agreed upon by both parties. A $95-million to $97-million salary cap would represent an 8% to 10.2% jump.

League revenue has outpaced guardrails put in place as part of the NHL and NHLPA's salary cap agreement during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Friedman.

The NHL and NHLPA agreed to raise the cap by 5.4% last summer when the cap rose $4.5 million from $83.5 million to $88 million.

If the sides opt not to go past the 5% mark for next season, the salary cap is expected to be around $92.5 million. It would be a $4.5-million increase from the current $88-million salary cap. The league would then see a larger jump to the salary cap for the 2026-27 campaign.

The current CBA expires in September 2026.