Worst NHL contracts, 2026-27
Costs more than the play it buys. Moving one takes a sweetener: a pick or a prospect, or salary retained. 126 players are under water; the 50 worst here.
Updated November 6, 2026.
| # | Player | Team | Cap hit | Yrs | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jonathan Huberdeau LW, 33 |  Calgary Flames | $10.50M | 5 | −$10.0M |
| 2 | Sean Couturier C, 33 |  Philadelphia Flyers | $7.75M | 4 | −$7.5M |
| 3 | William Karlsson C, 33 |  Vegas Golden Knights | $5.90M | 3 | −$6.0M |
| 4 | Ryan Graves D, 31 |  Pittsburgh Penguins | $4.50M | 3 | −$4.7M |
| 5 | Adam Lowry LW, 33 |  Winnipeg Jets | $5.00M | 5 | −$4.7M |
| 6 | Alexander Romanov D, 26 |  New York Islanders | $6.25M | 7 | −$4.6M |
| 7 | Jake Walman D, 30 |  Edmonton Oilers | $7.00M | 7 | −$4.4M |
| 8 | Conor Garland RW, 30 |  Columbus Blue Jackets | $6.00M | 6 | −$4.4M |
| 9 | Trent Frederic C, 28 | Edmonton Oilers | $3.85M | 7 | −$3.8M |
| 10 | Jason Dickinson C, 31 | Edmonton Oilers | $4.00M | 5 | −$3.4M |
| 11 | Jonathan Marchessault C, 35 |  Nashville Predators | $5.50M | 3 | −$3.1M |
| 12 | Pierre Engvall LW, 30 | New York Islanders | $3.00M | 4 | −$2.9M |
| 13 | Logan O'Connor RW, 30 |  Colorado Avalanche | $2.50M | 5 | −$2.9M |
| 14 | Jeffrey Viel LW, 29 |  Tampa Bay Lightning | $2.50M | 5 | −$2.9M |
| 15 | Thatcher Demko G, 30 |  Vancouver Canucks | $8.50M | 3 | −$2.6M |
| 16 | Alexander Wennberg C, 32 |  San Jose Sharks | $6.00M | 3 | −$2.4M |
| 17 | Patrick Kane RW, 37 |  Chicago Blackhawks | $8.00M | 2 | −$2.3M |
| 18 | Colton Sissons C, 33 |  Toronto Maple Leafs | $4.25M | 2 | −$2.3M |
| 19 | Marcus Foligno LW, 35 |  Minnesota Wild | $4.00M | 2 | −$2.2M |
| 20 | Ryan Ellis D, 35 | Chicago Blackhawks | $6.25M | 1 | −$2.0M |
| 21 | Torey Krug D, 35 |  St. Louis Blues | $6.50M | 1 | −$2.0M |
| 22 | Tyler Seguin C, 34 |  Dallas Stars | $9.85M | 1 | −$2.0M |
| 23 | Tristan Luneau D, 22 |  Anaheim Ducks | $0.86M | 7 | −$1.9M |
| 24 | Boone Jenner C, 33 |  Washington Capitals | $5.75M | 4 | −$1.9M |
| 25 | Michael McCarron RW, 31 | Minnesota Wild | $3.33M | 6 | −$1.8M |
| 26 | Ondrej Palat LW, 35 | New York Islanders | $6.00M | 1 | −$1.7M |
| 27 | Elvis Merzļikins G, 32 | Toronto Maple Leafs | $4.43M | 1 | −$1.6M |
| 28 | Brett Pesce D, 31 |  New Jersey Devils | $5.50M | 4 | −$1.6M |
| 29 | Nicolas Hague D, 27 | Nashville Predators | $5.50M | 3 | −$1.5M |
| 30 | Brandon Tanev LW, 34 |  Utah Mammoth | $2.50M | 2 | −$1.4M |
| 31 | Jordan Greenway LW, 29 | Chicago Blackhawks | $4.00M | 1 | −$1.4M |
| 32 | Cole Smith LW, 31 | Chicago Blackhawks | $3.00M | 3 | −$1.4M |
| 33 | Yanni Gourde C, 34 | Tampa Bay Lightning | $2.33M | 5 | −$1.3M |
| 34 | Connor Murphy D, 33 | Edmonton Oilers | $4.10M | 5 | −$1.3M |
| 35 | Chandler Stephenson C, 32 |  Seattle Kraken | $6.25M | 5 | −$1.2M |
| 36 | Frank Vatrano LW, 32 | Anaheim Ducks | $4.57M | 2 | −$1.2M |
| 37 | Barclay Goodrow RW, 33 | San Jose Sharks | $3.64M | 1 | −$1.1M |
| 38 | Beck Malenstyn LW, 28 |  Buffalo Sabres | $2.92M | 6 | −$1.0M |
| 39 | Brett Kulak D, 32 | Colorado Avalanche | $4.50M | 5 | −$1.0M |
| 40 | Tyrel Bauer D, 24 | Winnipeg Jets | $0.88M | 3 | −$0.9M |
| 41 | Noel Acciari C, 34 | Philadelphia Flyers | $2.80M | 2 | −$0.9M |
| 42 | Phillip Danault C, 33 |  Montreal Canadiens | $5.50M | 1 | −$0.9M |
| 43 | Andre Burakovsky LW, 31 |  Ottawa Senators | $5.50M | 1 | −$0.9M |
| 44 | Miles Wood LW, 31 | Toronto Maple Leafs | $2.50M | 3 | −$0.9M |
| 45 | Daylan Kuefler LW, 24 | New York Islanders | $0.88M | 3 | −$0.8M |
| 46 | Filip Chytil C, 27 | Vancouver Canucks | $4.44M | 1 | −$0.8M |
| 47 | Luke Tuch LW, 24 | Columbus Blue Jackets | $0.88M | 3 | −$0.8M |
| 48 | Jeremy Lauzon D, 29 | Vegas Golden Knights | $4.00M | 6 | −$0.8M |
| 49 | Andrew Copp C, 32 |  Detroit Red Wings | $5.62M | 1 | −$0.8M |
| 50 | Chase Bradley LW, 24 | Nashville Predators | $0.88M | 3 | −$0.8M |