Who has the largest NHL contract this season?
Nathan MacKinnon takes home the largest NHL contract for the 23-24 season, with McDavid following close behind. Check out how the NHL cap shakes out for the 23-24 season with this incredible infographic!
As you can see from this 23-24 NHL Cap Hit breakdown, quite a few teams are over the $83.5 million hard salary cap. That’s because several of these teams use loopholes in the Long-Term Injured Reserve (LTIR) rules under the NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement. Players like Mark Stone and Gabriel Landeskog carry significant cap hits, but their LTIR status frees cap space for teams to add additional salaries.
Also, teams are allowed to employ front-office, training, coaching, and support staff beyond the $83.5 million cap, which contributes to team salaries that crest the $100 million mark. Perhaps the largest increase in team spending comes from Colorado, featuring a team salary of $125 million, up a whopping 39.9% over last year’s spending.
Highest NHL contracts in history
Nathan Mackinnon’s massive $12.6 million-per-year deal is the highest in the NHL today, but it’s a far cry from the highest NHL contracts throughout history. In fact, Mackinnon’s cap hit isn’t even the largest Avalanche salary. That honor goes to none other than Super Joe himself at $16.45 million in the 97-98 season.
Nathan Mackinnon’s salary certainly ranks among the largest in history, along with those of other greats like Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin. Here’s a look at the largest contracts in NHL history:
- Alex Ovechkin (Washington)— $124 million over 13 years
- Shea Weber (Nashville/Montreal) — $110 million over 14 years
- Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh) — $104.4 million over 12 years
- Nathan Mackinnon (Colorado) — $100.8 million over 8 years
- Connor McDavid (Edmonton) — $100 million over 8 years
- Ilya Kovalchuk (New Jersey) — $102 million over 17 years*
- Ryan Suter (Minnesota) — $98 million over 13 years
- Zach Parise (Minnesota) — $98 million over 13 years
A standout number on the list of highest NHL contracts in history is Ilya Kovalchuk’s 17-year deal for $102 million. That deal is notable for blowing up in the face of New Jersey Devils GM Lou Lamoriello. Kovalchuck’s contract remains the longest term of any NHL player and is still paying out $550,000 through the 26-27 NHL season.
NHL coach salaries
NHL coaches have less noise surrounding them about contracts. As such, many NHL coaching salaries are unknown, with a few notable exceptions. Peter Laviolette of the New York Rangers makes a comfortable $4.9 million per year. In contrast, newcomer Luke Richardson of the Chicago Blackhawks only carries a salary of $1.5 million.
Coaches typically receive contract extensions as the team reaches certain milestones or success. For instance, the three longest-tenured coaches in the NHL have Stanley Cups and consecutive playoff berths under their belts. Unfortunately, coaches who run into slumps and underwhelming degrees of success are the first to bear public and private blame, often leading to firings mid-season.
Final thoughts on the largest NHL contract this season
NHL superstars take home a decent chunk of change, but their salaries still lag far behind other professional sports. The NBA, NFL, and MLB have contracts ranging from $50 million to $70 million, making Mackinnon’s $12.5 million look like pocket money.
Regardless, it’s always interesting to see how these incredible athletes get paid, and the numbers are simply staggering. Us spectators will always be in awe over the latest signing that makes waves around the league as another superstar takes up the mantle of having the largest NHL contract.
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