The AHL has been playing without a new CBA this season. Frank Jansky / Getty Images
The American Hockey League (AHL) and Professional Hockey Players’ Association (PHPA) announced a tentative collective bargaining agreement Wednesday afternoon. The CBA must still be ratified by the PHPA’s membership and approved by the AHL’s board of governors.
The AHL has been playing without a new CBA this season.
.@TheAHL and @thephpa have reached a tentative deal on a new collective bargaining agreement. The agreement is subject to ratification by the AHL Board of Governors and by the PHPA’s AHL membership. pic.twitter.com/HSGUbQjbp2
— AHL Communications (@AHLPR) January 7, 2026
The Athletic reported in November that there was optimism a deal could be reached between the AHL and PHPA. This new CBA comes on the heels of the ECHL and PHPA ratifying a five-year collective agreement last month after contentious negotiations.
The AHL is North America’s No. 2 professional hockey league, the NHL’s top minor league. The ECHL is a level below the AHL.
The new AHL agreement will be for five seasons, carrying until 2029-30. Some of the main compensatory changes in the tentative agreement include:
Player contract minimums rising from $52,725 to $61,000 by 2030
Playoff pool bonuses rising from $2.03 million to $2.21 million
Per diem rate when on the road increases
Introduction of an hourly rate for commercial appearances
Other noteworthy shifts include a league-wide 65-game limit for playing three games in three nights and a mandatory day off with no travel after those games.
The new CBA will also include a new qualifying offer system for under-26-year-old first-year AHL-contracted players. Players will now be eligible to receive a one-year qualifying offer for a second season at 110 percent of their prior salary.
The agreement has new provisions in which clubs can buy out players in the offseason. Players under 26 years old would receive one-third of their remaining salary, and players over that age would receive two-thirds.
And the AHL’s veteran rules will be amended so that AHL teams can now dress six veteran players per game (players with more than 260 games of experience), simplifying the previous system where one of the six could not have played more than 320 games.
There are improvements to player benefits, and the Christmas break has been expanded to four days in addition to those changes. The new CBA will also include the creation of a new health and safety committee, a new labor management committee, as well as a new substance abuse and behavioral health program to support players. The AHL will also adopt the NHL/NHLPA performance-enhancing substance program.