Usually, when the NHL/NHLPA collective bargaining agreement expires, it takes a lockout for the two sides to agree on a new one. But this time, they got it done early.
As always, a new CBA brings a plethora of changes.
NHL insider Frank Seravalli reported on Tuesday morning that the NHL and NHLPA have agreed to implement most of these changes to start the 2025-26 season, even though the new CBA doesn’t take effect until 2026-27.
It’s not yet clear exactly which ones will start early, though Seravalli mentioned the playoff salary cap, dress codes and player endorsement possibilities as things that will change. The new contract structures won’t start until September 2026.
Here are some of the biggest adjustments the new CBA will bring.
84-game schedule, reduced preseason
Having more regular season games equates to more revenue, so the schedule is increasing from 82 games per team to 84.
It comes at the cost of a few preseason games, though. Teams currently play between six and eight exhibition games, depending on their preference, but it will now be standardized at four. Additionally, training camp will be limited to 13 days for players who participated in at least 50 games the previous season, and those who have played 100 games in their careers will be capped at two preseason games.
There are no complaints from anyone involved here. As mentioned, the league and the players both make more money, and the fans get more regular season action, rather than having to wade through two weeks of preseason games.
New term limits on contracts
Long gone are the days of Ilya Kovalchuk and Rick DiPietro signing 15-year deals that they never came close to finishing — those were outlawed years ago. But now, the longest deal a player will be allowed to sign is getting even shorter.
A player returning to his current team will be allowed to sign for a maximum of seven years, whereas the previous CBA allowed him to go for eight. A player joining a new team will be capped at six years, while the previous deal allowed for seven.
No more playoff LTIR loopholes
Most Stanley Cup-winning teams over the last decade or so have iced playoff rosters that exceed the salary cap. Until now, that was allowed in the playoffs.
The idea of the rule was to allow teams to ice the best possible rosters, regardless of salary details. But over the years, many teams were accused of embellishing injuries during the regular season, giving them the ability to acquire more talent at the trade deadline using that cap space.
In too many instances, players were injured for game 82 of the regular season and somehow healed a few days later for Game 1 of the playoffs. To prevent the possibility of funny business, they’re changing the rule.
Vegas Golden Knights captain Mark Stone was the most heavily accused of this, having gone on LTIR just before the trade deadline three straight years, only to be reactivated during the playoffs (aside from 2022, when they summoned him with nine games left in the regular season because they were about to miss the playoffs).
Teams will still be allowed to exceed the cap on paper during the postseason, but the actual rosters must be cap-compliant for each game.
This will even the playing field in the playoffs a little more, which could cut down on the number of repeat champions. Remember, the last time a Florida-based team did not make the Stanley Cup Final was before the pandemic.
More money in players’ pockets
The players will receive more money because of this CBA:
- The players’ cut of playoff revenue will increase significantly.
- The salary cap and salary floor will increase at unprecedented rates.
- The league-minimum salary will increase each year until it hits $1 million.
There is one drawback for the players, money-wise: Instead of an eight-year term limit for re-signing players and a seven-year limit for those joining new teams, the limits will now be seven and six years, respectively.
This might raise average annual values a little bit, but overall it will probably result in less money going to the players.
Retired player wellness fund
The NHL Alumni Association will now get $4 million annually to assist retired players in need.
The association’s mission is to “make tomorrow better than today for players immediately.” This fund is designed to do exactly that, assisting anyone who played in the league — whether it be one game or 1,000.
It’s something that the Alumni Association had spent years fighting for, so it’s a huge win for them.
Midseason PTOs
Teams will now be able to sign players to professional tryout contracts (PTOs) during the season. Prior to this change, PTOs were only valid during training camp.
There’s also a new rule with these PTOs: The only team that can sign the player to a full contract is the one that gave the PTO. Previously, anyone could swoop in and sign a player during a tryout.
Mandatory neck guards
The death of former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Adam Johnson startled the hockey world into something it probably should have done long ago: making neck guards mandatory.
Johnson died at age 29 after taking a skate to the neck during a game in the Elite Ice Hockey League, the United Kingdom’s top division of hockey. A number of NHL players immediately started wearing them after the incident, and both the AHL and the ECHL made them mandatory for all players.
The new NHL CBA mandates them for incoming players. Everyone will eventually be wearing them, but those who have already played in the league will be grandfathered in — the same way the league did it when making visors a required piece of equipment.
No more dress code
There had long been a debate over what players should be allowed to wear to games and during team travel. Teams had previously been able to set the rules for their players, and naturally some were stricter than others.
Starting in 2026, teams will no longer be allowed to restrict their players’ fashion choices. Instead, the league-wide rule will take effect, stating that players must dress “in a manner that is consistent with contemporary fashion norms.”
Many players will likely continue to dress the way they always have, but some have always sought ways to express themselves — and this is one way they can do that.
Full-time EBUG
A visit to David Ayres’ HockeyDB page yields a strange result: one NHL game played, with zero experience in any minor, junior or collegiate league. That’s because he played a game as the emergency backup goalie for the Carolina Hurricanes in February 2020.
Every game has a designated EBUG, whose job is to fill in as a backup goalie if both net minders on either team get hurt.
Ayres wasn’t the first EBUG to play part of a game, but he was the first one to be credited with a win: He stopped eight of the 10 shots he faced during his 28:41 of playing time. He was 42 years old at the time, making him the oldest goalie to ever win in his regular season NHL debut.
As cool as Ayres’ story is to fans, many people within NHL organizations weren’t as amused — particularly those who played goalie. It could have just as easily gone the other way, with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner filling the net every time they touched the puck. And worse, what if that game had decided the playoff fate of one of the teams?
That’s why the new CBA will allow teams to hire their own third goalies. The person may be otherwise employed by the team, though they can’t have played in the NHL before, and there are limitations on a few other aspects. That means, for example, Utah Mammoth goaltending coach Corey Schwab would be ineligible to serve as their EBUG, but they could have, say, a video coach who played in juniors.
No-trade lists sent to Central Registry
At the 2022 trade deadline, the Vegas Golden Knights traded Evgenii Dadonov to the Anaheim Ducks — well, they tried to, anyway.
The trade was eventually nixed by the league because the Ducks were on Dadonov’s no-trade list, and he did not waive it. An investigation later revealed that when the Golden Knights acquired him from the Ottawa Senators, the Senators did not clarify the details of his trade protection rights.
It’s a bad look for all three teams involved — not to mention Dadonov, who suddenly had Golden Knights fans mad at him for not waiving his clause, and Ducks fans mad at him for not wanting to go there. As punishment, the Senators were forced to forfeit a first-round pick.
The league will now require players to advise their no-trade lists with the NHL’s Central Registry department — the group that’s responsible for notarizing trades. This change intends to remove any confusion regarding trade protection.
No more paper transactions
Cap space is accrued over time, meaning the fewer players you have on your roster, the more money you can spend later. Teams that are close to the salary cap often send waiver-exempt players to the AHL during days off, even if they have no intention of actually having them play or practice in the minors.
To get rid of that, the new CBA will require players to actually play at least one game before being recalled to the NHL.
Standardized draft rights
Until now, you almost had to go through a flow chart to figure out how long a team would hold a player’s draft rights. If he came from one league, it was two years, and from other leagues it was four years. If he played in multiple leagues, there were more factors involved.
The new CBA standardizes it to four years across the board. If you’re drafted by a team, that team has the exclusive right to sign you until four years later or until your 22-year-old season, whichever comes first.
Player endorsements for adult substances
NHL players will no longer be allowed to endorse cannabis products. The ban on endorsing tobacco continues, but the restriction on endorsing alcoholic beverages has been lifted.
CHL players joining the AHL early
While an official rule isn’t yet announced, the new CBA includes a clause that says the NHL will negotiate with the CHL to allow NHL teams to assign one player per team to join the AHL early.
The current rules restricts CHLers from playing in the AHL until age 20 or until they’ve played four full CHL seasons, whichever comes first. With so many star players leaving for the NCAA, NHL teams are understandably worried that their top prospects in the CHL who have already signed NHL contracts will not develop as quickly because the competition is suddenly lower than it has always been.