Inside the NHL’s Biggest Contract Surprises of 2025: Who’s Winning and Losing Big Bucks?

That’s Tampa Bay’s superpower and it makes the Lightning one of the league’s scariest teams for the 2025-26 season and beyond.

2. Carolina Hurricanes

Last season: 4th

Only one team (the Florida Panthers) has more money locked in than Carolina, with both teams just under $500 million in future commitments. The difference is the relative age of everyone involved. Where Florida has a group of elite players exiting their primes, Carolina has a large group of very good players that are entering theirs. Essentially, anyone in their right mind would take Florida short-term, but in the long run there’s a point where that likely shifts to Carolina.

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