The NHL will use a playoff salary cap from next year onwards. Insider Frank Seravalli reported the news on X, saying that the NHL and NHLPA agreed to implement the changes as early as possible.
Initially, the rule was set for the 2026-27 season, but it has been postponed to the 2025-26 season. Teams must be cap-complemented for each playoff match from now on.
"The NHL and NHLPA have agreed to a rolling implementation schedule for CBA changes," Seravalli wrote on X. "Among them: the new playoff salary cap system will come into effect this season for the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs."
The changes exclude the long-term injured reserve loophole. In past years, teams placed stars on LTIR to open up cap space. Those players often just before the playoffs. Teams like Chicago, Tampa Bay, Vegas and Florida utilised this loophole to win Cups. Now the roster must stay under the cap limit.
The new salary cap will affect trade deadline moves. Previously, teams could add expensive players and count only part of their salary. Now the full salary counts for the playoffs, even for late trades. That reduces deadline flexibility for general managers. Double salary retention in trading is also banned.
Some other changes are also going to begin this season. Teams can't use deferred pay in contracts. Furthermore, dress code changes start right away, and players can now endorse wine and spirits.
Seravalli also reported that players can sign under current rules until September 15, 2026. After that date, all new deals will follow the updated CBA.
For both sides, the change means more balance. Rivals cannot overload with players before the playoffs. It also limkit team's options with injured players. The salary cap will rise to $95.5 million. Still, playoff squad building will look different under the new rules.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman's statement on new CBA agreement
Earlier in June, talking about the NHL and NHLPA's new agreement, Gary Bettman said that the new CBA extension gives stability and clarity to teams, players and business partners.
"On all aspects of the business," Bettman said, via NHL.com, "whether it's how you construct your team ... salary caps, players anticipating what types of contracts they can negotiate ...
"It gives everybody a sense of stability, a sense of certainty ... optimism that everything is going well and will continue to fuel the growth that we've seen. It's all good."
The extension begins September 16, 2026, and ends September 15, 2030. The current CBA, originally linked back in 2013with an extension in 2020, is going to end before the agreement starts.