The NHL’s salary cap will increase to $95.5 million, The Athletic’s Chris Johnston reported on Friday.
The welcome news is a pleasant surprise as the rumored increase was $92 million. Rumors of a potential jump to over $100 million in the next three seasons prompted speculation about upcoming deals for big stars like Leon Draisaitl (who signed for a $14 AAV earlier this season), Mitch Marner, and, of course, Mikko Rantanen.
According to speculation, the Avs were wary of committing the bulk of their cap space to three stars: Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar, and Rantanen.
However, the higher-than-expected increase now raises the question: Did the Avalanche act precipitously by trading Rantanen when they did?
The short answer is yes. While the Avalanche may not have known when a decision on the salary cap would drop, the fact of the matter is that the club had to anticipate that a raise in the cap ceiling could eliminate concerns about paying Rantanen too much.
Ultimately, the Colorado Avalanche made a poor decision. The club should have followed the Edmonton Oilers’ lead and signed Rantanen now and figured out the rest later. Now, the Oilers look like geniuses by signing Draisaitl when they did.
Meanwhile, the Oilers look foolish by failing to move quickly and sign Rantanen when they had the chance. The cap increase now paves the way for the Hurricanes to back up the Brinks truck and pay Rantanen what he wants.
Salary cap increase allows Colorado Avalanche to sign Cale Makar
Earlier, I discussed how Cale Makar’s next contract is something that weighed into the decision to trade Rantanen. Makar will likely command the highest-ever deal for a blue liner in NHL history. As such, the Avalanche now have no real concerns regarding cap space to pay Makar.
With the cap going up to $113.5 million for the 2026-2 season, the Avalanche will have plenty of cap space to sign Makar.
The key will be not to tie up said cap space with goofy contracts. If anything, the Avalanche must be savvy in utilizing their cap space so that no toxic contracts bog the team down ahead of Makar’s next contract negotiations.
There’s one other thing I’d like to point out: The increase in the cap ceiling, while useful in paying Makar, should also enable the Avalanche to sign Martin Necas long-term. Necas will be a free agent after next season. As such, the Avalanche must get smart and lock up Necas now.
The club can do so with a deal much cheaper than Rantanen’s while ensuring they keep Necas for the foreseeable future. Don’t be surprised if the Avs cough up the dough and give Necas an eight-year deal in the $9 million to $10 million AAV range.
With the cap increase, the Avs should still have enough change left over for the bus and a Coke.