How the looming salary cap boost could reshape the Islanders' plans

The NHL and the NHL Players' Association agreed on a plan earlier this year that will boost the league's salary cap – which is currently set at $88 million – by $25.5 million, all the way to $113.5 million for the 2027-28 season.

The boost includes incremental increases in the cap, first to $95.5 million in 2025-26 and then to $104 million in 2026-27. Needless to say, the new spending limits will benefit top NHL players as they hit free agency, but they will also benefit teams like the New York Islanders looking to avoid a complete teardown and get back into playoff contention as soon as next season.

How the looming salary cap boost could reshape the Islanders' plans

The Islanders, led by first-year general manager Mathieu Darche, have made it clear they have no intention of undergoing a large scale, long-term rebuild. Instead, they are going to attempt to thread the needle, as it were, and build around the core pieces they have in place – namely, centers Mathew Barzal and Bo Horvat.

The great news for the Islanders is that both of the aforementioned centers are already signed through the 2029-30 season. So, too, is starting goaltender Ilya Sorokin. As it stands now, the team has just shy of $21 million in cap space to add pieces around those core pieces, and there is no shortage of ways they can weaponize it.

First, the Islanders have a bit of business to get done with their pending restricted free agents, particularly Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov. Dobson, a big, right-shot defenseman, has been drawing interest from other teams, and a higher salary cap could give the Islanders some more leverage when it comes to negotiating a new deal and/or matching a potential offer sheet.

Barzal and Horvat remain at the center of the Islanders' offensive plans, but New York needs to add some more goal-scoring weapons around them – particularly of the younger variety. The Islanders don't exactly have a ton of help on the way in their prospect pipeline aside from Calum Ritchie, the centerpiece of the Brock Nelson trade.

So, if they truly have playoff ambitions in the next year or so, they are going to need to find offensive reinforcements elsewhere – and that's where the increased salary cap comes into play.

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