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The NHL salary cap for the 2026-27 season will be set at $104 million, an increase of $8.5 million from the previous season. The Blackhawks currently have $63.7 million committed, with potential buy-outs for players Andre Burakovsky and Andrew Mangiapane impacting their offseason plans.
How New NHL Salary Cap Impacts Blackhawks Offseason Plans
NHL insider Elliotte Friedman reported on Wednesday afternoon that the league has informed teams of the new figures for the 2026-27 salary cap and payroll range. The salary cap ceiling for next season will be $104 million, which is an $8.5 million increase from 2024-25. The salary cap floor will be $76.9 million for 2026-27.
As for the individual player maximum salary, that will be $20.8 million. Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov is set to be the highest-paid player in the league next season, with his $17 million per year extension officially kicking in.
According to PuckPedia, the Blackhawks have roughly $63.7 million on their books for 2026-27, but that number could change depending on some offseason decisions. Andre Burakovsky and Andrew Mangiapane are both buy-out candidates this summer, and the two carry $5.5 million and $3.6 million cap hits, respectively. There’s no guarantee that either will get bought out, but it’s certainly in the cards. Doing so would obviously drop the Blackhawks’ team cap hit for next season.
Sacha Boisvert and Dominic Toninato are also listed as part of the NHL roster right now, and both are likely to open next year in the AHL with the Rockford IceHogs. Boisvert has a $996,667 cap hit, while Toninato’s is $850,000.
Assuming at least one of Burakovsky and Mangiapane is bought out, plus neither Boisvert nor Toninato cracks the NHL roster out of training camp, the Blackhawks’ salary cap would be right around $56 million. That would put them $20 million below the salary cap floor, meaning they have plenty of money to spend in the offseason.
The new NHL salary cap for the 2026-27 season is set at $104 million.
The Blackhawks currently have approximately $63.7 million committed for the 2026-27 season.
Andre Burakovsky and Andrew Mangiapane are potential buy-out candidates for the Blackhawks this offseason.
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Of course, star forward Connor Bedard still needs a new contract for next season, and he’ll likely command $13-15 million per year, which will help the Blackhawks reach the floor. Kevin Korchinski and Ethan Del Mastro are also in need of new deals this summer as restricted free agents to return with the organization.
The Blackhawks only have three players to decide upon in unrestricted free agency — forward Ilya Mikheyev, forward Sam Lafferty, and defenseman Matt Grzelcyk. General manager Kyle Davidson has been outspoken about his desire to re-sign Mikheyev this summer, but the two sides have yet to reach an agreement. Lafferty is expected to search for a new destination in free agency, but there’s a chance that Grzelcyk gets brought back. With such a young D-core, his veteran presence as a No. 6/No. 7 could be beneficial.
Should Davidson and Mikheyev work out a deal, it will likely have to come in the form of a pay raise from the $4.037 million cap hit on his last contract. The Blackhawks can afford to shell out extra money to keep Mikheyev around, and between $5-6 million is within reason. That figure, combined with Bedard’s extension, would almost get the team to the cap floor.
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