List of NHL Teams, NHL Hockey Team Names

If you are looking for NHL Salary Cap information, stats, and history, PuckPedia is the only source you need. Check out the comprehensive list of hockey team names below to see their salary cap space, number of contracts, and the best NHL Teams by seeing which teams have the highest odds off making the playoffs. The List of NHL teams below is your index to get the important information you need.

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2018-2019 NHL Cap Space

Salary Cap Limit: $79,500,000

Salary Cap Floor: $55,400,000

Projected Cap Space
Contracts

Atlantic Division

Team	Projected Cap Space	Active Roster	Playoff %
Boston Bruins	$5,049,387	22/23	100.0%
Buffalo Sabres	$621,471	23/23	0.0%
Detroit Red Wings	$-8,119,994	23/23	0.0%
Florida Panthers	$1,387,044	24/23	0.0%
Montreal Canadiens	$6,137,024	23/23	0.0%
Ottawa Senators	$5,910,108	21/23	0.0%
Tampa Bay Lightning	$1,964,554	23/23	100.0%
Toronto Maple Leafs	$12,216,667	23/23	100.0%

Atlantic division playoff odds via SportsClubStats

Metropolitan Division

Team	Projected Cap Space	Active Roster	Playoff %
Carolina Hurricanes	$15,348,334	22/23	0.0%
Columbus Blue Jackets	$5,600,517	22/23	100.0%
New Jersey Devils	$14,218,710	23/23	100.0%
New York Islanders	$10,374,221	23/23	0.0%
New York Rangers	$1,063,096	23/23	0.0%
Philadelphia Flyers	$8,700,002	22/23	100.0%
Pittsburgh Penguins	$733,575	23/23	100.0%
Washington Capitals	$-39,403	23/23	100.0%

Metropolitan division playoff odds via SportsClubStats

Central Division

Team	Projected Cap Space	Active Roster	Playoff %
Chicago Blackhawks	$2,737,704	23/23	0.0%
Colorado Avalanche	$11,333,357	23/23	100.0%
Dallas Stars	$1,469,166	23/23	0.0%
Minnesota Wild	$2,475,684	22/23	100.0%
Nashville Predators	$8,303,334	23/23	100.0%
St. Louis Blues	$-2,004,348	23/23	0.0%
Winnipeg Jets	$5,974,265	22/23	100.0%

Central division playoff odds via SportsClubStats

Pacific Division

Team	Projected Cap Space	Active Roster	Playoff %
Anaheim Ducks	$-782,375	23/23	100.0%
Arizona Coyotes	$8,470,920	21/23	0.0%
Calgary Flames	$1,313,246	23/23	0.0%
Edmonton Oilers	$-5,818	23/23	0.0%
Los Angeles Kings	$-323,489	22/23	100.0%
San Jose Sharks	$299,058	23/23	100.0%
Vancouver Canucks	$8,338,256	23/23	0.0%
Vegas Golden Knights	$5,800,114	22/23	100.0%

Pacific division playoff odds via SportsClubStats

What Is the NHL Salary Cap?

The NHL salary cap is the total amount that NHL teams may pay for players. The amount set as the salary cap each year depends on the league’s revenue for the previous season. As it is a 'hard cap,' there are no exemptions. However, if a player is injured and it's thought that they will miss at least 10 NHL games and 24 days in the season, their team can put them on long-term injured reserve (LTIR). By doing so, they can surpass the salary cap.

The salary cap was introduced to prevent teams with the most revenue signing all the top players, which was becoming a problem in the '90s and early 2000s. For instance, by signing a number of top-performing players and significantly spending more than the majority of other teams, the Detroit Red Wings were able to win three Stanley Cups in that time.

This led to the 2004-05 CBA negotiations, during which the entire season was cancelled — the first time a labor dispute has ever caused a cancellation in a major sports league in North America. At the time of the negotiations, teams were spending around 75 percent of their revenues on salaries — much higher than any other North American sports league. Eventually, they agreed to the general structure that remain today, including the mandatory payment to players in US dollars.

The concept of a salary cap is not new to the NHL. One was first introduced during the Great Depression, at which time the salary cap per team was $62,500 and $7,000 per player.

Salary Cap History

Since its reintroduction in the 2005-06 season, the NHL salary cap has risen every year:

2005-2006	$39.0 million
2006-2007	$44.0 million
2007-2008	$50.3 million
2008-2009	$56.7 million
2009-2010	$56.8 million
2010-2011	$59.4 million
2011-2012	$64.3 million
2012-2013	$60.0 million *
2013-2014	$64.3 million
2014-2015	$69.0 million
2015-2016	$71.4 million
2016-2017	$73.0 million
2017-2018	$75.0 million
2018-2019	$79.5 million

*During the 2012-13 season, there was a lockout. The salary cap was set to $60 million, but NHL hockey teams were allowed to spend a pro-rated $70.2 million for the shortened season.

The salary floor (the minimum that a team must spend as a whole) is 85 percent of the salary midpoint. For the 2017-18 season, the cap floor is $55.4 million.

History of the Teams

Originally, there were just six NHL teams, called the Original Six. In the 1967-68 season, six new teams were added. The Original Six formed the East Division and the new six formed the West Division.

In 1974, six more NHL hockey teams joined the league, creating 18 in total. The league then took four teams from the World Hockey Association when it ceased to exist in 1979. With the Cleveland Barons gone in 1978, this brought the total to 21 teams.

There was no further expansion to the league until the '90s. The next new NHL team was the San Jose Sharks in 1991. Another eight were added in the subsequent decade to reach 30 teams by 2000. Finally, in 2016, Gary Bettman, the NHL commissioner, announced that another new NHL team — the Vegas Golden Knights — would join the List of NHL Teams, making 31 teams for the 2017-18 season.

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Everything You Want to Know About Your Favorite NHL Teams