Overview

• Starting with the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs, teams must file by 3 p.m. local time or five hours before puck drop a 20‑player playoff roster (18 skaters, 2 goalies) whose averaged club salary is at or below the upper limit.
• The compliance test applies only to the players dressed for that game, with dead cap charges counting toward the total and performance bonuses excluded under the new calculation.
• LTIR changes for 2025–26 cap relief limit replacement players’ combined salary/bonuses to the injured player’s amount and cap their average amounts at the prior season’s average league salary, with an exception that bars the injured player from returning if exceeded.
• Immediate adjustments include relaxed dress codes and permission for wine and spirits endorsements, a prohibition on double salary retention in trades, and a ban on deferred compensation in new contracts beginning Oct. 7.
• General managers are being briefed this week in Chicago, and major contract-structure changes remain slated for Sept. 16, 2026, with players allowed to sign under current rules through Sept. 15, 2026.