It's August 2nd And The Avalanche's Cale Makar Hasn't Signed An Extension

Is there trouble in the Central Division?

The Colorado Avalanche have been a juggernaut in the division since Nathan MacKinnon hit his prime, and head coach Jared Bednar's system took them to the Stanley Cup championship in 2022. The team has at times seemed invincible, even after being bounced in the playoffs by the Seattle Kraken in 2023. 

The team has a new challenge with the exit of general manager Chris McFarland, who left for the Nashville Predators' GM job. 

General Manager Joe Sakic has a major task ahead, and that is getting an extension with defenseman Cale Makar done. 

It’s August 1 and Cale Makar has not signed an extension with the Colorado Avalcnhe 👀

— Matchsticks & Gasoline (@MatchsticksCGY) August 2, 2026

TSN's Pierre LeBrun believes that Makar, under the new salary cap, will be able to make upwards of $20 M AAV on his next contract. Is that what's holding up the deal? 

"Would anyone blink if Makar asked for $20 million per year?" LeBrun writes. "I mean, he’s 27, he’s a top-five player in the world regardless of position, and the salary cap landscape is exploding in the year he is up. No disrespect to Pavel Dorofeyev, a fine goal scorer, but if he is worth $11 million per year now, what’s the No. 1 defenseman in the world worth?"

Makar has only suited up with the Avalanche in his career, and has been a top-tier defenseman in the NHL, with 470 GP, 507 points scored (136 goals and 371 assists), and won a  Norris Trophy in 2021-22. 

Back on June 30th, LeBrun believed that the Avalanche would ink him to an extension. Is there something else going on here?

"Either way, we shouldn’t expect a Makar extension Wednesday, according to league sources, who were granted anonymity to address negotiations that aren’t public," LeBrun writes. "There really hasn’t been much work done on it yet. But both sides intend to get to it sometime this summer, to be sure." 

The Avalanche better find a way to make it happen soon. Or do his motivations lie elsewhere, like his native Calgary? At this point we're speculating, but in 2026 stranger things have happened.