There are some key changes set to be implemented to the National Hockey League in the coming years after the NHL and NHLPA agreed to some terms during the latest rounds of discussions over a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.
According to Chris Johnston and Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic, the NHL plans to go forth with an 84-game regular season starting in 2026-27, while also addressing the problematic long-term injury reserve loophole teams were using to side-step the salary cap.
Per the report, the two sides agreed to enact a playoff salary cap with the aim of preventing teams from circumventing the salary cap.
It'd become a common trend in recent seasons for a team to place a player with a sizable contract on LTIR before the trade deadline in order to open up some cap space to acquire a player on the market. The player would remain on LTIR until the first game of the playoffs, at which point they'd be activated without the team having to take their salary back on. It served as a way for teams to further fortify their roster without going over the cap, while still having their key players available for the postseason.
That practice will be nixed as part of the upcoming CBA. The current CBA doesn't expire until September of 2026, so these changes aren't expected to go into play until the 2026-27 season.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NHL to Address LTIR Loophole With Playoff Salary Cap in New CBA Contract.
