The Colorado Avalanche make Nathan MacKinnon the highest-paid player of the NHL’s salary cap era.
MacKinnon, who turned 27 earlier this month, has signed an eight-year contract worth US$100.8 million, according to a source familiar with the matter. That person spoke on condition of anonymity as the team has not announced contract details.
His new salary will count for $12.6 million toward the salary cap effective at the start of the 2023-24 season, surpassing Connor McDavid’s $12.5 million as the league’s highest. McDavid’s eight-year, $100 million deal with the Edmonton Oilers signed in 2017 was the previous record for the highest annual salary since the system was implemented in 2005.
The only other more lucrative cap-era deals are: Alex Ovechkin’s 13-year, $124 million deal with the Washington Capitals, Shea Weber’s 14-year, $110 million deal with the Nashville Predators and Sidney Crosby’s 12-year, $104.4 million contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The collective agreement has since limited the duration of contracts to eight years for a player who remains with the same team and to seven years for free agents.
MacKinnon accepted the deal as training camp is about to begin. It’s been a short summer for MacKinnon and the Avalanche after their first Stanley Cup title since 2001.
The center with a fearsome slapshot and quick skating ability finished tied for the league lead with 13 playoff goals. That’s the second-highest total in team history that same year, behind Joe Sakic’s 18 goals in 1996 (when the Avalanche won their first Cup).
MacKinnon, the first pick in the 2013 draft, has been a Hart Trophy finalist in three of the past five seasons (2017-18, 2018-19, 2020-21). He has 242 career goals and 406 assists — a high among players drafted the same year.
“Nathan is obviously one of the best players in the NHL, so a long-term extension was something we wanted to complete before the start of the season,” Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland said in a statement. . He offers that rare combination of speed and power with a high level of competition that makes him a unique player. We are thrilled that he will continue to be a part of this team and this community for many years to come. »
For years, MacKinnon was known as the most underpaid hockey player — a title he really didn’t enjoy. Now he has another: Stanley Cup champion.
He is part of a core team with the Avalanche that also includes defenseman Cale Makar, forward Mikko Rantanen and captain Gabriel Landeskog.
MacKinnon is now under contract until 2031. The Avalanche can also count on versatile forward Valeri Nichushkin until 2030, Landeskog until 2029 and Makar, the playoff MVP, until 2027. The next mission of MacFarland next summer will be to extend Rantanen’s deal.
“Denver is the only place I want to be,” MacKinnon said recently during a pre-season media tour.
McDavid envisions being passed as the highest-paid player, “It’s good for hockey, I guess, to keep raising the bar.
“But at the end of the day, the salary cap system is a weird system where the more money you make, the less someone else can make,” he added. In that light, it’s a bit of an odd system. There will always be concessions to be made. »