Despite their undoubtable value on the ice, NHL forwards earn considerably less compared to equivalent high-scoring positions in other sports, with a mere $4.5 million difference between the league’s top earner and the 25th in the pay rankings.
Auston Matthews, the 2021-22 NHL MVP, takes the crown as the highest-paid NHL forward making over $13.25 million per year. In ’23, Matthews signed a four-year, $53 million contract extension to remain with the Maple Leafs.
Trailing Matthews is Avalanche star Nathan McKinnon who brings in $12.6 million annually after signing a long-term eight-year, $100.8 million contract extension in 2022.
Coming in less than $1 million behind the highest-earner, three-time MVP Connor McDavid takes the third position earning $12.5 million yearly.
Rounding out the top five are Artemi Panarin and Elias Pettersson making $11.64 million and $11.6 million, respectively. Panarin is set to be a free agent again in 2026 while Pettersson recently signed a long term deal keeping him in Vancouver until at least 2032.
The Highest-Paid Forwards
Here is the full list of the 25 highest-paid NHL forwards by average salary. The list was compiled using data from Spotrac.
- Updated: March 9th, 2025
| Rank | Player | Team | Compensation |
| 1 | Auston Matthews | Toronto Maple Leafs | $13.25 million |
| 2 | Nathan MacKinnon | Colorado Avalanche | $12.6 million |
| 3 | Connor McDavid | Edmonton Oilers | $12.5 million |
| 4 | Artemi Panarin | New York Rangers | $11.64 million |
| 5 | Elias Pettersson | Vancouver Canucks | $11.6 million |
| 6 | William Nylander | Toronto Maple Leafs | $11.5 million |
| 7 | David Pastrnak | Boston Bruins | $11.25 million |
| 8 | John Tavares | Toronto Maple Leafs | $11 million |
| 9 | Mitchell Marner | Toronto Maple Leafs | $10.9 million |
| 10 | Jonathan Huberdeau | Calgary Flames | $10.5 million |
| T-11 | Aleksander Barkov | Florida Panthers | $10 million |
| T-11 | Jack Eichel | Vegas Golden Knights | $10 million |
| 13 | Tyler Seguin | Dallas Stars | $9.85 million |
| 14 | Sebastian Aho | Carolina Hurricanes | $9.75 million |
| T-15 | Jamie Benn | Dallas Stars | $9.5 million |
| T-15 | Matthew Tkachuk | Florida Panthers | $9.5 million |
| T-15 | Alex Ovechkin | Washington Capitals | $9.5 million |
| T-15 | Brayden Point | Tampa Bay Lightning | $9.5 million |
| T-15 | Nikita Kucherov | Tampa Bay Lightning | $9.5 million |
| T-15 | Mark Stone | Vegas Golden Knights | $9.5 million |
| 21 | Mikko Rantanen | Dallas Stars | $9.25 million |
| 22 | Nicklas Backstrom | Washington Capitals | $9.2 million |
| 23 | Matthew Barzal | New York Islanders | $9.15 million |
| T-24 | Jake Guentzel | Tampa Bay Lightning | $9 million |
| T-24 | Kirill Kaprizov | Minnesota Wild | $9 million |
