Forbes has released their 18th annual valuation of the National Hockey League’s teams. The New York Rangers found themselves at the top of the list for the second consecutive year, with a worth of $1.25 billion. This is a 4% value change from the previous year. Teams that also topped the list were the Montreal Canadians ($1.2 billion), Toronto Maple Leafs ($1.10 billion), and the Chicago Blackhawks ($925 million).
Overall, NHL teams have all seen a team value increase of 3% since 2015. The average NHL team is now worth $517 million. In 2014, the average NHL team value rose 18.6%, which is six times more than it increased this year. The primary reasons for the high overall profitability the past two seasons is due to the 2014-15 season was the first the league’s lower (relative to revenue) salary cap as well as a 12-year, $5.23 billion (Canadian) media deal with Rogers Communications.
The top 10 Forbes NHL team valuation are as listed below.
| Rank | Team | Owner | Value | 1-Year Value | Revenue | Operating |
| ($mil) | Change (%) | ($mil) | Income($mil) | |||
| 1 | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | 1.25 | 4 | 219 | 74.5 |
| 2 | Montreal Canadiens | Molson Family | 1.12 | -5 | 202 | 76.9 |
| 3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Bell Canada, Rogers Communications Larry Tanenbaum | 1.10 | -4 | 186 | 68.0 |
| 4 | Chicago Blackhawks | Rocky Wirtz | 925 | 0 | 173 | 34.4 |
| 5 | Boston Bruins | Jeremy Jacobs | 800 | 7 | 169 | 33.5 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Flyers | Comcast Spectacor | 720 | 9 | 160 | 24.7 |
| 7 | Vancouver Canucks | Aquilini Investment Group | 700 | -6 | 146 | 29.6 |
| 8 | Detroit Red Wings | Michael & Marian Ilitch | 625 | 4 | 137 | 6.1 |
| 9 | Los Angeles Kings | Philip Anschutz | 600 | 3 | 142 | -0.4 |
| 10 | Washington Capitals | Ted Leonsis | 575 | 2 | 136 | 11.7 |