Aarif Deen
Everything the Colorado Avalanche and their front office have completed throughout the last few weeks was the easy part of the offseason. The biggest task — the most important — is navigating a long-term contract extension with superstar defenseman Cale Makar.
The 27-year-old two-time Norris Trophy winner is a year away from the conclusion of his current deal, which pays him $9 million annually. The rising cap, along with Makar’s meteoric rise since the start of his current contract, which began with a Norris, Stanley Cup, and Conn Smythe Trophy, is setting this up to potentially be the biggest NHL contract signed in history.
Whether that happens or not, is entirely up to him, according to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman.
“It’s going to be purely up to him. He could,” Friedman said on Monday’s season finale episode of the 32 Thoughts podcast. “I think he’s going to get whatever he wants.”
This offseason has already seen former Avalanche defenseman Bowen Byram sign the biggest AAV among defensemen, locking in a six-year deal worth $12.5 million annually with the Chicago Blackhawks. Like Makar’s impending extension, that deal doesn’t begin until the 2027-28 season.
We’ve also seen the highest AAV in general get passed just this last week. Last summer, the Minnesota Wild gave Kirill Kaprizov a $17 million AAV extension, blowing past the previous high of $14 million. But that was passed again when the Philadelphia Flyes tendered a groundbreaking offer sheet to Anaheim Ducks center Leo Carlsson, paying him $18 million per year for five years.
Whether or not the Ducks match the offer sheet doesn’t change the fact that the Carlsson deal could have an impact on where Makar lands. The salary cap is $104 million this year, and the maximum a player can sign for is 20% of the cap. That means Makar could sign for up to $20.8 million per year.
Nobody has ever signed for 20% of the cap since the lockout was implemented 21 years ago. That likely won’t change with Makar. However, he could leave money on the table and still match — or even pass Carlsson’s current AAV.
“I’ll bet you he does not max out. That they’ll go to him and they’ll be like, ‘We can pay you whatever you want, and you deserve it,” Friedman said. “I think he takes a big number, as he deserves. But I don’t think he takes everything he can. I just don’t think he maxes out in terms of the maximum number, which this year is $20 million. But I think he takes a big, big number. I think he leaves a little bit of cap flexibility. A little bit.”
The Avalanche have been setting up their cap picture to include Makar’s new deal for years. That was part of the reason why it was time to move on from Valeri Nichushkin and his four remaining years and why Jack Drury wasn’t re-signed. It’s also why they acquired young forwards Fedor Svechkov and Zachary L’Heureux in the Drury trade — two players who are under contract already for both the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons for reasonably low rates.
Wherever the Makar contract lands, it’s going to be a groundbreaking deal. He’s certainly going to pass Byram’s benchmark among defensemen. All he needs to do is make more than $14 million — which is very likely — and he’ll be in the top three among all contracts. If he doubles his current rate, he’d match Carlsson’s $18 million, while still leaving nearly $3 million on the table.
It’s a waiting game now as his agent and the Avs’ management work through negotiations.