Naming the NHL's All-Overpaid Team in 2023-24
The NHL has had a hard salary cap in place since 2005-06. Nevertheless, that hasn't prevented a number of players from earning expensive salaries on long-term contracts.
Most of the league's highest-paid players, such as Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid or Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, deserve what they're earning. They're either the best players in the league or the best on their team.
Some, however, are not earning their paycheck this season.
They can be players who landed a big fat contract based on a career-best season like Calgary Flames winger Jonathan Huberdeau. Others, such as Columbus Blue Jackets winger Patrik Laine, have struggled to regain the success from earlier in their careers.
We've broken down this season's NHL All-Overpaid Team by position based on performance, salary and contract length as well as their role with their teams. We've also included a Second All-Overpaid Team.
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Second All-Overpaid Team
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Goaltender: Philipp Grubauer, Seattle Kraken
Sitting ninth among this season's goalies in annual salary ($5.9 million), Grubauer has just five wins in 13 games. Among this season's 59 goaltenders with at least five games played, his .881 save percentage ranks 52nd overall, while his 3.42 goals-against average is 48th.
Defenseman: Darnell Nurse, Edmonton Oilers
Nurse's blue-line struggles this season are among the reasons the Oilers are near the bottom of the standings. His performance is not up to the level of a top-pairing defenseman earning an AAV of $9.25 million.
Defenseman: Dmitry Orlov, Carolina Hurricanes
The 32-year-old Orlov signed a two-year contract with an AAV of $7.8 million with the Hurricanes. He's currently skating on their third defense pairing.
Center: Kevin Hayes, St. Louis Blues
Signed by the Philadelphia Flyers in June 2019 to a seven-year, $50 million contract, Hayes spent four seasons with them until he was traded to the Blues on June 27, with the Flyers retaining half his $7.1 million cap hit. With just nine points in 21 games, he's nowhere close to earning that hefty salary.
Right Wing: Brendan Gallagher, Montreal Canadiens
In the third season of a six-year deal with an AAV of $6.5 million, the 31-year-old Gallagher has nine points in 21 games. He remains a hardworking, lead-by-example veteran, but his physical style is taking a toll on his performance. He's unlikely to reach 30 goals and 50 points again.
Left Wing: Johnny Gaudreau, Columbus Blue Jackets
Following a career-best 115-point performance in 2021-22 with the Calgary Flames, Gaudreau inked a seven-year deal with the Blues Jackets with an AAV of $9.8 million. His production fell last season to 74 points, and he's managed 11 points in 23 games this season.
Goaltender: Jack Campbell, Edmonton Oilers
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The Edmonton Oilers signed goaltender Jack Campbell to a five-year, $25 million contract on July 13, 2022. He'd become an unrestricted free agent that summer following two-and-a-half seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
With Campbell coming off a two-year contract with an average annual value of $1.65 million with the Leafs, the Oilers gave him a big pay raise of $5 million annually plus a 10-team no-trade list. While that cap hit isn't as expensive as other notable NHL goalies, he's still among the top 20 in terms of this season's highest-paid.
Expected to handle the starting goalie role for the Oilers, Campbell struggled to play up to expectations. He was relegated to backup duty midway through last season by then-rookie Stuart Skinner. Campbell's performance at the start of this season was so bad that he's been playing with the Oilers' AHL affiliate in Bakersfield since Nov. 7.
Campbell had just one win in his five NHL appearances this season. Among goalies with at least five games played, he has a league-worst 4.50 goals-against average. This was not what the Oilers envisioned when they signed Campbell. It's one reason they find themselves trying to climb out of the bottom of the Western Conference standings.
Defenseman: Seth Jones, Chicago Blackhawks
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Traded to Chicago by the Columbus Blue Jackets on July 23, 2021, Seth Jones inked an eight-year contract extension on the same day worth $76 million. With an average annual value of $9.5 million, the 29-year-old Jones sits sixth among this season's highest-paid defensemen.
His new deal was a significant raise over the $5.4 million AAV of his previous contract. By the time he signed his new pact, his play had declined from his career-best 57-point performance in 2017-18. However, then-Chicago general manager Stan Bowman envisioned him as a significant addition to help his club return to its former championship glory.
Bowman resigned in October 2021 following sexual assault allegations against a former assistant coach while the club floundered on the ice, leading to a roster overhaul by new GM Kyle Davidson. Jones reached 51 points during his first season in Chicago, but his plus/minus was the league's second-worst at minus-37. Last season, it was against the second-worst at minus-38, while his production fell to 37 points.
To be fair, skating on a depleted roster since 2021-22 hasn't helped Jones' defensive stats. Nevertheless, it's difficult to make the case at this stage of his career that he should be among the highest-paid blue liners. With Chicago rebuilding, it can afford to carry his hefty contract for the time being.
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Defenseman: Marc-Édouard Vlasic, San Jose Sharks
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Signed to an eight-year, $56 million contract extension on July 1, 2017, Marc-Édouard Vlasic is earning an average annual value of $7 million. However, it's become a deal that hasn't aged well for the San Jose Sharks.
Vlasic's contract is a prime example of the risks that come with signing an aging player to an expensive long-term contract. He's carrying an average annual value of $7 million through 2025-26. While he no longer has a full no-movement clause, he carries a three-team list of preferred trade destinations.
When Vlasic signed that contract at age 30, he was still considered among the league's better defensemen. A shutdown blueliner who could contribute offensively, he'd received votes for the Norris Trophy four times between 2013-14 and 2017-18. He also won a gold medal with Canada's 2014 Winter Olympics men's hockey team.
Vlasic's performance has declined since 2018-19. Now 36, he logs just 14:05 of ice time per game on the third pairing. His best seasons are well in the past, and he's no longer worth being paid like a top-pairing defenseman. The Sharks won't find any takers for his contract in the trade market, which could lead to a buyout of his remaining two seasons next summer.
Center: Ryan Johansen, Colorado Avalanche
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Acquired by the Nashville Predators from the Columbus Blue Jackets midway through the 2015-16 season, Ryan Johansen signed an eight-year, $64 million contract over a year later. The deal pays him $8 million annually and lacks no-trade protection.
At the time, Johansen was coming off a 61-point performance in his first full season with the Predators. It was the fourth straight season he reached or exceeded the 60-point plateau. Then 24 years old, the skilled playmaker seemed poised for bigger and better things entering his playing prime with a club that was coming off a trip to the Stanley Cup Final.
Johansen would tally 64 points in 2018-19 and 63 points in 2021-22, but he never had that big breakout performance. He had 36 points in 68 games in 2019-20 followed by 22 points in 48 games during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 campaign. Last season saw him manage 28 points in 55 games before a foot injury ended his campaign.
Traded last summer to Colorado, Johansen had 10 points in his first 21 games with his new club. At least the Avalanche aren't on the hook for the full remainder of his contract as his $8 million cap hit is being divided evenly between the two clubs. At 31, his best days appear to be behind him.
Right Wing: Patrik Laine, Columbus Blue Jackets
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A versatile player who can play all three forward positions, Patrik Laine began this season at center. He's since been moved back to right wing. Regardless of the position he plays, the 25-year-old Columbus Blue Jackets forward is among this season's most overpaid players.
Since his acquisition from the Winnipeg Jets in January 2021, Laine has not played up to the potential of his sophomore season (2017-18) when he netted 44 goals. Injuries have hampered him since arriving in Columbus, limiting him to 45 games in 2020-21, 56 games in 2021-22 and 55 games in 2022-23. A concussion sidelined him for nine games this season.
Nevertheless, Laine's disappointing play this season prompted head coach Pascal Vincent to make him a healthy scratch from a game on Nov. 19 with the Philadelphia Flyers. Laine called it "the most embarrassing thing" that's happened to him in his playing career. With just three goals and five points in 13 games, he's still not playing up to expectations.
The Jackets signed Laine to a four-year contract on July 22, 2022, with an average annual value of $8.75 million. So far, they haven't received much of a return on that investment. The injuries undoubtedly have played a part, but Sportsnet's Jason Bakula pointed out instances when Laine was lacking effort and attention to detail in recent games.
Left Wing: Jonathan Huberdeau, Calgary Flames
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Fresh off a career-high 115-point performance with the Florida Panthers in 2021-22, Jonathan Huberdeau was acquired by the Calgary Flames on July 22, 2022. He inked an eight-year, $84 million contract extension on Aug. 4.
Expected to replace departed left winger Johnny Gaudreau on the Flames' top line, Huberdeau has struggled with his new club. He managed just 55 points in 79 games last season as the Flames missed the playoffs.
Entering training camp in September, Huberdeau told Calgary reporters that he had regained his confidence and was looking forward to this season. Instead, he and his teammates stumbled from the gate. As of Nov. 28, he sat fourth among Flames scorers with 13 points in 21 games.
Huberdeau's hefty contract has him facing considerable pressure to play up to expectations. At 30 years of age, however, it could be that his best seasons are behind him. If so, his $10.5 million average annual value will become increasingly burdensome over the remaining seven years of his deal.
Stats (as of Tuesday) via NHL.com with salary info via CapFriendly. Additional info via Hockey Reference and Daily Faceoff.
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