Despite their undisputed value on the ice, NHL goaltenders earn a limited piece of the economic pie. Only five goaltenders rank among the 60 highest-paid players overall in the NHL.
The Rangers’ Igor Shesterkin is the highest-paid goaltender, earning $11.5 million annually. The 2022 Vezina Trophy winner signed an eight-year, $92 million contract during the 2024–25 season. The man he replaced, the recently retired Carey Price, was a seven-time NHL All-Star who made $10.5 million annually with the Canadiens and later the Sharks before his contract expired in April.
The Panthers’ Sergei Bobrovsky and Lightning’s Andrei Vasilevskiy hold the second and third positions, making $10 million and $9.5 million per year, respectively.
The Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck ranks fourth with a cool $8.5 million. In 2023, Hellebuyck signed a seven-year, $59.5 million contract extension to remain in Winnipeg. He will be joined by the Canucks’ Thatcher Demko next season, after his three-year extension that pays him $8.5 million a year goes into effect.
Two of the goaltenders on the most-paid list are backups who earn more than some teams’ starters. Vancouver backup Kevin Lankinen comes in at 25th, with a $4.5 million average annual salary—just $500,000 less than teammate Demko currently. Meanwhile, Kraken starting goaltender Joey Daccord’s 2024 contract pays him $5 million a year—$900,000 less than the man he beat out for the job, Philipp Grubauer.
The market for goaltenders will shift, with the salary cap exploding from $88 million in 2024–25 to $113.5 million by 2027–28.
The Highest-Paid Goaltenders
Here is the full list of the 25 highest-paid goaltenders by the annual average value of their salary. The list was compiled using data from Spotrac.
- Updated: April 22, 2026
| Rank | Player | Team | Compensation |
| 1 | Igor Shesterkin | New York Rangers | $11.5 million |
| 2 | Sergei Bobrovsky | Florida Panthers | $10 million |
| 3 | Andrei Vasilevskiy | Tampa Bay Lightning | $9.5 million |
| 4 | Connor Hellebuyck | Winnipeg Jets | $8.5 million |
| T-5 | Jake Oettinger | Dallas Stars | $8.25 million |
| T-5 | Ilya Sorokin | New York Islanders | $8.25 million |
| T-5 | Jeremy Swayman | Boston Bruins | $8.25 million |
| T-5 | Linus Ullmark | Ottawa Senators | $8.25 million |
| 9 | Juuse Saros | Nashville Predators | $7.74 million |
| 10 | Lukas Dostal | Anaheim Ducks | $6.5 million |
| 11 | John Gibson | Anaheim Ducks | $6.4 million |
| 12 | Adin Hill | Vegas Golden Knights | $6.25 million |
| T-13 | Jordan Binnington | St. Louis Blues | $6 million |
| T-13 | Jacob Markstrom | New Jersey Devils | $6 million |
| 15 | Phillip Grubauer | Seattle Kraken | $5.9 million |
| 16 | Logan Thompson | Washington Capitals | $5.85 million |
| 17 | Elvis Merzlikins | Columbus Blue Jackets | $5.4 million |
| 18 | Tristan Jarry | Pittsburgh Penguins | $5.37 million |
| T-19 | MacKenzie Blackwood | Colorado Avalanche | $5.25 million |
| T-19 | Darcy Kuemper | Los Angeles Kings | $5.25 million |
| T-21 | Joey Daccord | Seattle Kraken | $5 million |
| T-21 | Thatcher Demko | Vancouver Canucks | $5 million |
| T-23 | Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen | Buffalo Sabres | $4.75 million |
| T-23 | Karel Vejmelka | Utah Mammoth | $4.75 million |
| T-25 | Spencer Knight | Chicago Blackhawks | $4.5 million |
| T-25 | Kevin Lankinen | Vancouver Canucks | $4.5 million |
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