What the National Hockey League's CBA extension means for Canada's teams
The National Hockey League and NHL Players' Association have decided to give labour peace another chance.
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Before the first round of the NHL draft was held Friday night at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles, commissioner Gary Bettman and Marty Walsh, the executive director of the union, held a news conference to announce a four-year extension of the collective bargaining agreement.
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The deal needs to be ratified by the NHL's board of governors and the members of the NHLPA. The players will begin voting next week, and the board of governors saw most of the details during a meeting last Wednesday in Los Angeles.
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The current agreement will expire in Sept. 2026. The new deal ensures members of the NHL and the fans that there is no chance of labour uncertainty until 2030. The NHL has had several work stoppages, including the 2004-05 lockout that wiped out the whole season.
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The most recent lockout was in 2012-13.
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'This was a very thorough, constructive and professional process, and I think that bodes very well for the future of the game and the relationship between the players and the league going forward again, while we have an understanding and agreement,' Bettman said on Friday.
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Walsh echoed those sentiments.
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'The process for us now is to take this agreement to the entire membership for ratification; we're going to do that over the next week or so,' Walsh said. 'I'm happy with the process. Hopefully, the players will be happy with the outcome.'
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So, what does this mean for hockey fans in Canada?
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All teams will have to be cap-compliant for the playoffs, which will help even the playing field.
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THE ALMIGHTY DOLLAR
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The cap will rise significantly over the next three seasons, which will make life more challenging for small-market teams in places such as Ottawa and Winnipeg in a league where the salaries are paid in U.S. dollars.
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This year, teams can spend up to $95.5 million US, but in 2026-27, that number will rise to $104 million. It will go up to $113 million in 2027-28.
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If Winnipeg and Ottawa want to spend up to the cap in 2027-29, it will cost the seven clubs north of the border $154 million in Canadian currency, based on the current exchange rate.
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'What we were trying to do was catch up after a number of years of a flat cap, and so we were trying to do that on an orderly basis,' Bettman said of releasing salary projections for three seasons.
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'Over the years, our projections have been pretty good, and while we can always agree to make adjustments if circumstances warrant, we think the projections that we made and the caps that we put in place for the next three years are where they should be.'
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The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles by top sports columnists Patrick Johnston, Ben Kuzma, J.J. Abrams and others. Plus, Canucks Report, Sports and Headline News newsletters and events. Unlimited online access to The Province and 15 news sites with one account. The Province ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles and comics, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors That much is clear after snagging centre Braeden Cootes 15th overall at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, a player everyone says plays with heart, has sneaky-good skills and, above all else, is a top-notch leader. He was captain of the Thunderbirds and captain of the Canada U18s. Leadership is his thing. It's a statement about the culture of his family and the values of his junior team. 'Above the line,' he said during his first meeting with the media, was a lead value of his team. 'You keep pounding the stone. It's eventually going to break,' was another. Culture in Seattle is huge. So is talent. 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'And how he played and how prepared he was and the consistency. And I think that's something in that program that they, from the top, are teaching those young players.' Cootes listed a couple former teammates as players he's learned to model his own leadership on: Lucas Ciona, who was captain in Seattle in that first tastes of the WHL in 2022-23, and Lucas Gustafson, who was captain in 2023-24. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Two guys I looked up to big time in how they led and just everybody there really,' he explained. 'Like I said, the culture in Seattle, I mean, it's just kind of the person that I became. Obviously what we do there is top notch in how we handle ourselves as people and players.' For some time there had been speculation that the Canucks would trade the pick, especially to grab a second-line centre. But in the end they went with the future. Allvin downplayed what was available. 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