CNBC valued the 32 NHL teams at an average of $2.71 billion each, up 23% from a year ago. The Toronto Maple Leafs lead at $5.4 billion, followed by the New York Rangers at $4.7 billion and the Montreal Canadiens at $4.1 billion. This marks the first time a team has crossed the $4 billion threshold.
The Pittsburgh Penguins sold for $1.8 billion to the Hoffmann family in a deal approved in June, but sports bankers note this price was negotiated 18 months earlier. More recent minority stake sales better reflect current market value. In March, a 12.5% stake in the Carolina Hurricanes sold at a $2.66 billion team valuation. A 15% stake in the New York Islanders is close to selling at a $3 billion valuation.
"Like the other major sports leagues there is a strong demand to own hockey teams because their media content values are high and there is a scarcity of teams," said Sal Galatioto of Galatioto Sports Partners.
The league's current national media rights deals with Walt Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery pay a combined average of close to $650 million annually through the 2027-28 season. The 2025-26 regular season averaged 546,000 viewers across ESPN/ABC and TNT Sports, up 25% from the prior year. The 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs averaged 1.8 million viewers, up 68% from 2025 and the highest playoff average on record for American television since 1994.
Average team revenue for the 2025-26 season was $257 million, up 6% year-over-year. Average EBITDA per team fell 11% to $48 million, citing arena expenses.
In April 2025, the NHL and Rogers Communications agreed to a 12-year Canadian media rights deal worth $7.79 billion starting in the 2026-27 season, more than double the existing deal's value. The league expects hockey-related revenue to reach around $7.25 billion for the 2026-27 season, up 7%.
The NHL is considering expansion teams in Houston and Atlanta. New expansion fees are expected to exceed $2 billion, compared to the $650 million fee the Seattle Kraken paid for the 2021-22 season.