Methodology - undefined - The NHL's Highest-Paid Players 2022 (2024)

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Who has the highest salary in the NHL? ›

Topping the list of the NHL's highest on-ice earners for 2023-24 is the Colorado Avalanche's Nathan MacKinnon, who signed a record eight-year, $100.8 million extension after the Avs' Stanley Cup win in 2022.

Estimated net worth: US$250 million

Known as “the Great One”, Canada's Wayne Gretzky has been called the GOAT (Greatest of All Time) by sportswriters, players and the NHL itself.

Ovechkin's unique circ*mstances, including his impact on the popularity of hockey in Washington, D.C., and his long-term contribution to the sport, have also been cited as reasons for his perceived underpayment.

The minimum salary for players in the NHL amounted to 750 thousand U.S. dollars in the 2023/24 season. The minimum salary for the league is agreed upon in the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), which is a basic contract between the NHL and the NHL Players' Association.

3 million USD (2024)

Sidney Crosby / Salary

But the crown comes with an asterisk: Sharing the No. 1 spot is Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon with $17.5 million of his own. The 28-year-old MacKinnon will collect $16.5 million of that total on the ice, from the eight-year, $100.8 million contract extension he signed last fall.

Even though they have not won the Stanley Cup since 1967, Forbes values the Maple Leafs at $2.8 billion, $150 million more than the New York Rangers ($2.65 billion), who held the top spot for eight straight years. The Montreal Canadiens are the NHL's third-most-valuable team, worth $2.3 billion.

Career highlights since retirement include positions as minority owner and Head Coach of the Phoenix Coyotes, Executive Director of 2002's Gold Medal-winning Canadian Men's Olympic Hockey team, owner of the popular Toronto bar and restaurant Wayne Gretzky's, winemaker with the celebrated Wayne Gretzky Estates Winery, ...

He is an actor and producer, known for Spiral (2021), Mile 22 (2018) and Apex (2021).

What did Wayne Gretzky do for a living? ›

Wayne Douglas Gretzky CC (/ˈɡrɛtski/ GRET-skee; born January 26, 1961) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and former head coach. He played 20 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for four teams from 1979 to 1999, retiring at the age of 38.

Connor Bedard signed a 3 year / $13,350,000 contract with the Chicago Blackhawks, including a $285,000 signing bonus, $13,350,000 guaranteed, and an annual average salary of $4,450,000. In 2023-24, Bedard will earn a base salary of $855,000 and a signing bonus of $95,000, while carrying a cap hit of $950,000.

Alex Ovechkin's salary is $12,500,000 and his cap hit is $9,500,000 for the 2023-24 season. His salary is comprised of $11,500,000 in signing bonuses and $1,000,000 in base salary. He is a 38 year old left wing who was born on Sep. 17, 1985.

The Montreal Canadiens have won the Stanley Cup 24 times and made the Finals an additional eleven times. There were two years when the Stanley Cup was not awarded: 1919, because of the Spanish flu pandemic, and 2005, because of the NHL lockout.

This past season, there were 14 players in the NHL who made $10+ million. Colorado Avalanche's Nathan Mackinnon is not one of those players, however, next year he skyrockets to the top of the list with an average annual salary of $12.6 million, once his new deal kicks in.

Alex Ovechkin, the Russian-born left-winger and captain of the Washington Capitals, holds the distinction of signing the largest contract in NHL history. Valued at a staggering $124 million, Ovechkin's deal spans over 13 years.

The approximate average yearly salary for NHL officials is between 165,000 USD – 360,000 USD, depending on tenure. Rookies kick off their careers at the bottom of the scale, that is at around 200,000 USD for referees and around 137,000 USD for linesmen and as the years roll on, these figures see a steady rise.