NHL lost nearly $400M to injuries last season: Study

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Injuries can be costly, both physically and financially.

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In the National Hockey League, injuries are a regular occurrence due to the high level of play on the ice. When players are benched due to injury, teams take a  financial hit.

According to a study compiled by OnlineBetting.com, the total cost of injuries to NHL teams as players sat out recovering this past season was $389 million.

And that hurt the wallet, with the maximum cap per team for 2021-22 set at $81.5 million.

To calculate the tally, the betting company collected data — from Cap Friendly and NHL Injury Viz — on players’ individual salaries and factored in the games they missed while out injured, at a cost per game per player. Those numbers were tallied up to show which team was paying the players while recovering.

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According to the study, the Chicago Blackhawks poured out the most money with $30 million. Players Jonathan Toews, Brent Seabrook, Alexander Nylander and Zak Smith sat a majority of the season, with Toews ($11 million) and Seabrook ($7 million) each out 56 games.

Rounding out the top five on the injuries list was the St. Louis Blues (19 players at $26 million), Dallas Stars (18 players at $25 million), Boston Bruins (21 players at $24 million), and the Tampa Bay Lightning (13 players at $23 million).

So what kind of injuries cost the most? The OnlineBetting.com study noted lower-body injuries costed the NHL the most at $78 million last season, while upper-body injuries hurt its wallets at a cost of $73 million. Other costly injuries include hips ($29 million), shoulder ($27 million) and back ($25 million).