The Most Dysfunctional NHL Teams of the Salary Cap Era

by Spencer Toth - 2/24/2026

Most Dysfunctional NHL teams of the salary cap era Macklin Celebrini San Jose Sharks

In an effort to create parity, the NHL created the salary cap after the 2004-05 lockout. A league-wide figure that can’t be exceeded under any circumstances successfully leveled the playing field for the richest and poorest NHL franchises. While this idea was good in theory, mismanaged contracts and poor drafting decisions left some teams in utter chaos over the last two decades. One bad contract can set a franchise back several years, and the introduction of the salary cap only added to that equation. While some teams have gotten creative to stay competitive, others have found themselves in decade-long rebuilds with no end in sight. Here are the seven most dysfunctional NHL teams of the salary-cap era.

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#1 Buffalo Sabres (2011-2024)

The Buffalo Sabres look poised to end their 14-year playoff drought this season, which is the longest in NHL history. After missing the playoffs in 2011, the Sabres elected to rebuild the franchise, which somehow never rebuilt anything. Ville Leino’s six-year, $27 million contract represented 12% of the salary cap at the time of signing, and he rewarded the Sabres with ten goals over three seasons before a mutual buyout.

Buffalo then pivoted their strategy to the draft and appeared to have found their long-term star when they drafted Jack Eichel in the 2015 NHL Draft after they missed out on the Connor McDavid sweepstakes. Eichel played six seasons in Buffalo before an ugly contract dispute over a potential neck surgery went public, and Eichel forced his way out. The Sabres traded Eichel to the Golden Knights while retaining some of his salary in 2021, and while Eichel went on to win the Stanley Cup two years later, the Sabres were once again spending April on the golf course instead of competing in the playoffs.

There hasn’t been a more dysfunctional franchise in the salary-cap era, as the Sabres kept finding new and creative ways to waste young talent in Buffalo.

#2 Edmonton Oilers (2009-2016)

Before Connor McDavid saved this franchise, the Oilers were the epitome of terrible in the early 2010s. In five straight seasons, the Oilers finished bottom five in the league and won the NHL draft lottery an incredible four times. Before McDavid was drafted in 2015, the Oilers selected Nail Yakupov, Taylor Hall, and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins with their first overall picks. Yakupov immediately flamed out as one of the worst first overall picks of all time, while Hall and Nugent-Hopkins never lived up to their hype.

Even with the lottery gods looking down on the Oilers, Edmonton could not pull themselves out of a rebuild thanks to poor contract decisions. Handing Milan Lucic a $42 million contract was the icing on the cake, as Edmonton prioritized an aging Lucic over their young talent in Taylor Hall. McDavid’s arrival masked many of the issues in Edmonton, but there is no denying this franchise was a train wreck before his arrival.

#3 Toronto Maple Leafs (2006-2016)

Before the Maple Leafs earned their reputation for first-round collapses, they were rarely making the playoffs in the salary-cap era. Toronto quickly found out that throwing money at the franchise was no longer a viable option, and some poor trades set the franchise back several years. Toronto made all the wrong decisions on which prospects to develop; they routinely handed out big contracts to aging superstars, with the pinnacle of their misery being their Game 7 collapse against the Boston Bruins in 2013.

The Maple Leafs weren’t just losing; they were doing so in historic fashion. A revolving door at head coach didn’t help, and for a city that demands excellence, the mismanaged franchise was under a microscope. Auston Matthews’ arrival helped ease some of the pain, but the reality is that this team is still incredibly dysfunctional and could be the overall most dysfunctional franchise of the last two decades.

#4 Arizona Coyotes (2009-2024)

The now-defunct Arizona Coyotes were struggling to sell out a 5,000-seat college arena before their relocation to Utah in 2024. This wasn’t a team that struggled to stay under the salary cap, but rather a team that routinely found itself hovering around the salary floor.

The ownership was bankrupt; the Coyotes would take on contracts in exchange for draft capital that they would then flip with the hope of landing a superstar. Pavel Datsyuk’s $7.5 million cap hit was taken on in 2016 despite him never playing a game for the Coyotes. They also took on Marian Hossa’s ($5.25M) and Shea Weber’s ($7.86M) contracts despite the fact that both were dealing with long-term injuries. The Coyotes would see up to 20% of their cap space tied up in deals like these, producing on-ice mediocrity for more than a decade. Once you add in their arena issues, it is not surprising that the Coyotes were forced to pivot.

#5 Ottawa Senators (2017-2023)

In 2017, the Ottawa Senators were one goal away from the Stanley Cup Final. Two years later, their core was torn down as Erik Karlsson, Mark Stone, and Matt Duchene were all traded. While the Senators' reign at the bottom of the standings didn’t last as long as other teams on the list, their swift decline from contender to bottom-feeder is hard to overlook. The Senators got peanuts for their three superstars, which prevented them from turning their playoff triumph into sustained success. There were even rumors of the franchise's relocation from Canada’s capital, making the speed of the Sens' downfall even more remarkable. Ottawa has managed to emerge from its rebuild with several key assets, but it still went seven seasons without a playoff appearance, even though it once looked destined to dominate the league. The ownership’s willingness, or lack thereof, to spend money also didn’t help, leaving Senators fans thinking ‘what if’ to this very day.

#6 Vancouver Canucks (2014-2026)

The Vancouver Canucks have been struggling in the post-Sedin era. Since the twins retired, the Canucks have been stuck in mediocrity for the last decade. Instead of committing to a rebuild, Vancouver elected to try to stay relevant by overpaying free agents. They handed out horrendous contracts to Loui Eriksson, Jay Beagle, Antoine Roussel, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, forcing the franchise to buy them out or let them rot in the bottom six. At one point, more than 30% of the Canucks' contracts were locked in on the bottom six forwards. They consistently hovered between 20th and 25th in the standings, not good enough to bottom out, but not good enough to contend. Quinn Hughes and Elias Pettersson appeared to be their rewards for a patient approach in the last few years, but both have disappointed. Hughes was traded in 2025, while Pettersson is quickly turning into one of the worst busts in recent memory.

#7 San Jose Sharks (2019-2025)

The San Jose Sharks were victims of their own success after their 2019 Western Conference Final run. They handed out generous contracts to aging veterans, including 8-year deals between $56 million and $92 million for Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns, Marc-Edouard Vlasic, and Logan Couture. The Sharks suddenly had more than 45% of their cap space tied up in these four aging veterans, giving them no flexibility to extend their young prospects. A slow rebuild is finally starting to pay off, but the Sharks are still working around their poor contract decisions from nearly a decade ago. Macklin Celebrini is the lone bright spot that came out of the Sharks' demise, and San Jose will be hoping he can jumpstart their franchise like McDavid did with the 2015 Oilers.

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Start:	February 24, 2026 @ 6:30 PM
Expert:	Tony George
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The Most Dysfunctional NHL Teams of the Salary Cap Era

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