The 2023-24 NHL season is underway as the Las Vegas Golden Knights look to defend their Stanley Cup Championship. Let’s take a look at the league’s highest-paid players for the current campaign (2023-24), based on yearly cash:
10 Highest Paid NHL Players In 2023
1. Nathan MacKinnon
Center / Colorado Avalanche – $16,500,000
MacKinnon signed his contract before the start of the 2022 season. It is over 8 years and is worth $100 million, making him the highest-paid player for the 2023-24 season.
MacKinnon helped Colorado win the 2022 Stanley Cup and followed that up with a career-best performance in 2023.
Last season, the Avalanche center finished with 42 goals and 69 assists for a total of 111 points, all career-highs. It also marked the first time that he topped 100 points in a single season.
2. David Pastrnak
Right Wing / Boston Bruins – $13,000,000
Pastrnak had an outstanding season in 2022-23 and was rewarded with an 8-year extension that will pay him $90 million over the life of the contract.
Last season, Pastrnak broke out in a big way. Not only did he play in all 82 regular season games for just the second time in his career, but Pastrnak finished with a career-high 113 points and finished second in the NHL with 61 goals scored. He also finished with a career-best 52 assists.
3. Dougie Hamilton
Defenseman / New Jersey Devils – $12,600,000
Hamilton signed with the Devils as a free agent in 2021, when he signed a 7-year deal worth $63 million. He is currently in the third year of that deal.
The 30-year-old from Toronto, Ontario is the highest-paid defenseman in the NHL in 2023.
A terrific, two-way player, Hamilton finished with a career-best 74 points in 2022-23 and posted career-highs in both goals (22) and assists (52).
4. Kirill Kaprizov
Left Wing / Minnesota Wild – $12,500,000
The first of three players with the same yearly cash flow, Kaprizov is in the third-year of a five-year, $45 million deal.
The 26-year-old Russian struggled with injuries in 2022-23, playing in just 67 games. He finished with 75 points and posted his second consecutive 40-goal season.
In three NHL campaigns, Kaprizov has compiled an incredible 114 goals and 234 points in 203 games.
5. Alex Ovechkin
Left Wing / Washington Capitals – $12,500,000
The 38-year-old Ovechkin is in the third year of his five-year contract that pays him $47.5 million.
Despite being one of the oldest active NHL players, Ovechkin still ranks among the top-five highest-paid players in the league.
Ovechkin hasn’t posted a 100-point campaign since the 2009-10 season. However, he remains one of the NHL’s top goalscorers. Last year, Ovechkin played in 73 games, scoring 42 goals and adding 33 assists for a total of 75 points.
6. Seth Jones
Defenseman / Chicago Blackhawks – $12,500,000
Seth Jones will enter the 2023-24 season as the NHL’s second-highest-paid defenseman.
The former 4th overall pick signed a new contract upon being traded to the Blackhawks in 2021. The deal was worth $76 million over 8 years.
Last season, Jones had 12 goals and 25 assists in 72 games while posting the worst plus-minus of his career (-38).
7. Alec Pietrangelo
Defenseman / Vegas Golden Knights – $12,300,000
After 12 years with the St. Louis Blues, Pietrangelo signed with the Golden Knights in 2020, and received a contract worth $61.6 million over 7 years.
Pietrangelo has made his presence felt since joining the Vegas Golden Knights. Last year, he helped the franchise raise its first-ever Stanley Cup after having one of the best seasons of his career.
The 33-year-old defenseman tied a career-high with 54 points despite playing in just 73 games. He finished with 11 goals and added 43 assists during the regular season while adding 10 points in 21 postseason games on the Golden Knights’ run to the Stanley Cup.
8. Timo Meier
Left Wing / New Jersey Devils – $12,000,000
Meier has bounced between the San Jose Sharks and NJ Devils over the past four seasons but recently signed a long-term deal that will keep him in New Jersey.
The 27-year-old was re-acquired in a mid-season trade last year and signed a contract at the start of the off-season that is worth $70.4 million over 8 years.
9. Aleksander Barkov
Center / Florida Panthers – $12,000,000
Barkov is in the second year of an 8-year deal with the Panthers that will pay him $80 million over 8 years.
Barkov has been a pillar in the Panthers’ ascension toward the top of the Eastern Conference. He has compiled at least 20 goals in eight consecutive seasons. Last year, Barkov finished with 78 points (23 goals and 55 assists), which was tied for the third-best output of his career.
10. Zachary Werenski
Defenseman / Columbus Blue Jackets – $12,000,000
Werenski and the Blue Jackets agreed to an extension in 2021 that is worth $57.5 million over 6 years.
The 26-year-old defenseman had his season cut short due to injury last year but showed tremendous progress, netting eight points in his first 13 games before getting hurt.
