The Avalanche have started off hot this season, earning the most points across the entire NHL through November 5th. They made quality moves at the trade deadline last season, and with more time together, the players have gelled and are excelling to start the campaign. The team locked up tw of those recent additions - Brock Nelson long-term over the summer - and recently extended Martin Necas to a large contract.
All these moves are geared towards re-signing one player- Cale Makar. Makar will command a massive contract, likely the biggest for a defenseman in league history - and maybe even the largest contract overall in league history.
Makar is a generational player, and that’s not even enough praise to give him. The greatest defenseman of all time, Bobby Orr, as some say, will finish a distant second to Makar if Makar continues to meet his comet-like trajectory.
Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland must navigate a new age of a fiscally fruitful NHL landscape. With record contracts coming recently, MacFarland must continue to provide this team the tools to be its best, which includes signing players at appropriate financial terms.
Most importantly, MacFarland has one job moving forward. Obviously that sentiment isn’t true, as the job of an NHL general manager is not singularly focused, but it’s very clear to all that Makar’s next contract will break the record books, and it’s one that MacFarland can’t miss on.
Makar’s deal will set the market moving forward. MacFarland is making headway to open room to get this deal done with the signing of highly skilled Marty Necas to a lower-than-open market deal. He also traded off fan favorite and highly skilled Mikko Rantanen last season instead of signing him long term in his quest to ensure Makar remains wearing the burgundy and blue.
Makar is a MacFarland product. He had a role in drafting the Calgary native fourth overall in 2017. Promoted beyond an assistant general manager in 2022, when Joe Sakic took the position of President, MacFarland will now be tied to Makar for the rest of his tenure in Colorado, which will be a long one if burgundy and blue nation have any input.
This extension isn’t going to get done anytime soon. In fact, it can’t be before July 1 of next year. The stars are aligning in Avalanche land to sign Makar to a record-breaking deal, the likes of which will make the recent Kirill Kaprizov signing look paltry in comparison.
The team is projected to have nearly $50 million in cap space the first year of Makar’s new deal, so an average annual value upwards of $15 or $16 million per season is not out of the question. Two Norris trophies, a Calder trophy and a Stanley Cup prove as much.
It’s got to be the starting point. MacFarland has made moves with the future, namely this contract, in mind, and July of next season will be the time for him to leave his imprint on the organization long after he’s departed.
A once in a lifetime player deserves, and has earned, the right to be able to demand that kind of money. MacFarland and the Avalanche have made many of the right moves over the last few years, and Makar is the next domino to fall for the team to continue their exemplary ways.
Based on their moves from the past few seasons through the present, it's clear that MacFarland will back up the Brinks truck for Makar.