Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar has signed a new eight-year contract with the club worth a total of $163.2 million. According to Sport RBC.UA, citing the player's agency, the deal sets the most expensive contract in the history of the National Hockey League on two key metrics — both the total value of the deal and the average annual value. In doing so, the 27-year-old Canadian has not only cemented his status as one of the league's most valuable defensemen, but has also reset the economic benchmarks for the entire NHL free-agent market.
A record on every front
The average annual value of Makar's new contract is $20.4 million, which is also an absolute league record. The Canadian becomes the first player in NHL history to earn more than $20 million per season. Notably, the new deal will only take effect starting with the 2027/28 season: until then, the defenseman continues to receive $9 million per year under the six-year contract he signed earlier. This deal structure allows the club to manage its salary cap during the transition period, while giving the player the maximum guaranteed sum over the long term.
The road to the top: from the draft to the Stanley Cup
Colorado selected Makar with the fourth overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, and since then the Canadian has become the face of the team. Over his career, he has won the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie, claimed the Norris Trophy as the league's best defenseman twice, and also lifted the Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. One of the brightest seasons of his career remains the 2021/22 campaign: Makar recorded 86 points (28 goals and 58 assists) in 77 regular-season games, won the Norris Trophy for the second time, and added another 29 points in 20 playoff games, helping Colorado win the Stanley Cup and earning the series MVP honor himself.
Recent achievements and international career
In the 2024/25 season, Makar won the Norris Trophy for the second time in his career, scoring 30 goals and becoming the first NHL defenseman since the 2008/09 season to cross that mark. In the 2025/26 regular season he played 75 games, recording 20 goals and 59 assists, and his performances helped Colorado win the Presidents' Trophy — the award given to the team with the best regular-season record. In the playoffs, the defenseman missed the first two games of the Western Conference Final due to injury, and Colorado ultimately lost the series to the Vegas Golden Knights 0–4. On the international stage, the Canadian won the Four Nations Face-Off with the national team in 2025, and in 2026 he became a silver medalist at the Olympic Games.
Impact on the market and the salary cap
Makar's new contract surpassed the previous record held by Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov, who signed a $136 million deal last summer. Experts expect Makar's record-breaking deal to influence Minnesota's upcoming negotiations with star defenseman Quinn Hughes. At the same time, Makar's share of the club's cap space may shrink over time due to the expected significant increase in salary caps: starting with the 2027/28 season, the cap is projected to rise to an estimated $113.5 million, with a single player's maximum salary capped at 20% of the limit. It is also worth noting that the current summer is the last one in which NHL clubs can sign eight-year contracts: once the new collective bargaining agreement takes effect, the maximum contract length will be seven years.
What's next for Colorado
The new deal will allow the Colorado Avalanche to retain Makar until at least the age of 36, guaranteeing the club stability in a key defensive position throughout the peak of the defenseman's career. For the league as a whole, Makar's contract sets a new price benchmark and confirms that the era of super-contracts for elite defensemen is only just beginning.
