Athletes

The 25 Highest-Paid NHL Defensemen

Penguins enforcer Erik Karlsson is the highest-paid NHL defenseman.
In 2025, no defenseman earns over $12 million in salary.

Apr 22, 2024 | 06:21 am

UPDATED Jul 16, 2025 | 04:56 pm

Danny Wild-USA TODAY Sports

Similar to forwards, compensation among NHL defensemen is very balanced with less than $4 million separating the first and 25th highest-paid defensemen. In 2025, no defenseman makes more than $12 million in annual salary.

Penguins enforcer Erik Karlsson is the highest-paid defenseman, making $11.5 million annually. Karlsson signed an eight-year, $92 million contract with the Sharks in 2019 before being traded to the Penguins in August 2023.

Sharing the second spot are Rasmus Dahlin and Drew Doughty, who both earn $11 million a year. In the fourth position is Oilers stopper Evan Bouchard, who inked a contract extension following the 2025 season.

Rounding out the top five is Zachary Werenski at $9.58 million. Werenski signed a six-year, $57.5 million contract extension in 2021.

Close behind are Charles Mcavoy, Seth Jones, Noah Dobson, and Adam Fox, who each make $9.5 million annually. Fox is set to become a free agent in 2029 while Mcavoy and Jones won’t hit the market until 2030. Dobson’s deal doesn’t run out until 2032.

Ranking The Highest-Paid NHL Defensemen

Here is the full list of the 25 highest-paid NHL defensemen by average annual salary. The list was compiled using data from Spotrac.

Rank	Player	Team	Yearly Compensation
1	Erik Karlsson	Pittsburgh Penguins	$11.5 million
T-2	Rasmus Dahlin	Buffalo Sabres	$11 million
T-2	Drew Doughty	Los Angeles Kings	$11 million
4	Evan Bouchard	Edmonton Oilers	$10.5 million
5	Zachary Werenski	Columbus Blue Jackets	$9.58 million
T-6	Charles Mcavoy	Boston Bruins	$9.5 million
T-6	Seth Jones	Florida Panthers	$9.5 million
T-6	Noah Dobson	Montreal Canadiens	$9.5 million
T-6	Adam Fox	New York Rangers	$9.5 million
10	Darnell Nurse	Edmonton Oilers	$9.25 million
11	Roman Josi	Nashville Predators	$9.06 million
T-12	Cale Makar	Colorado Avalanche	$9 million
T-12	Jakob Chychrun	Washington Capitals	$9 million
T-12	Dougie Hamilton	New Jersey Devils	$9 million
15	Alex Pietrangelo	Vegas Golden Knights	$8.8 million
16	Moritz Seider	Detroit Red Wings	$8.55 million
T-17	Mikhail Sergachev	Utah Hockey Club	$8.5 million
T-17	Brock Faber	Minnesota Wild	$8.5 million
T-17	Ivan Provorov	Columbus Blue Jackets	$8.5 million
20	Miro Heiskanen	Dallas Stars	$8.45 million
21	Owen Power	Buffalo Sabres	$8.35 million
T-22	Brent Burns	Carolina Hurricanes	$8 million
T-22	Jacob Trouba	Anaheim Ducks	$8 million
T-22	Jake Sanderson	Ottawa Senators	$8 million
T-22	Thomas Chabot	Ottawa Senators	$8 million
T-22	John Carlson	Washington Capitals	$8 million
T-22	Victor Hedman	Tampa Bay Lightning	$8 million