Nikita Kucherov is the kind of name that can light up a fanbase in a hurry, and the Colorado Avalanche are no different. The thought of him skating next to Nathan MacKinnon and Martin Necas is easy to dream on. The problem is that the math gets ugly fast.
Reports say Kucherov’s asking price opened around the $17 million AAV the Minnesota Wild gave Kirill Kaprizov, and then climbed after the deals for Leo Carlsson, Macklin Celebrini, and Cale Makar. At this point, any new contract discussion for Kucherov begins where Makar landed.
That tracks. Colorado paid premium money for Makar, a two-time Norris Trophy winner and the NHL’s best defenseman, and Kucherov, the reigning Hart Trophy winner, sees himself in that same tier.
That’s exactly why the Avalanche run into a wall here. Unless Kucherov is willing to take a team-friendly deal, or leave money on the table for the chance to play with MacKinnon, it’s hard to see how Colorado fits another cap hit that could reach $20 million.
And even beyond the sticker shock, the fit isn’t as necessary as it first sounds. Colorado can use help on the power play, sure, but the Avalanche already have Necas as a high-end winger alongside MacKinnon.
That changes the equation. There’s no real sense in blowing up the team’s financial setup just to add another elite winger.
The case for Kucherov would be stronger if Colorado didn’t already have that kind of talent in place. But with Necas on the roster, the Avalanche would be paying a massive premium for a luxury they don’t really need.
The age factor matters too. Kucherov is 33, and the price tag being discussed is enormous. Colorado would have to do major cap surgery to make it work, and that’s before factoring in the reality that the Avalanche will already be up against the cap next season once Makar’s new contract kicks in.
So while Kucherov would absolutely make the Avalanche better, the financial burden makes this an easy pass for Joe Sakic.
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Avalanche Sent A Message After Cale Makar Took A Scary Hit
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For Colorado, the result mattered not just in the standings but in the tone it set after Cale Makar absorbed a scary hit. The Avalanche did not let the moment linger, instead leaning into a more forceful response and taking control of the game from there. It was the sort of road victory that can carry a little extra weight, especially when a team is looking to show it can handle adversity and still finish the night on its terms. [Read more 🡒]
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Colorado also looked sharp in the latest game in a way that tends to matter in the long run, going perfect on the penalty kill and keeping opponents from grabbing easy momentum. With Landeskog providing a spark, Kadri finding his touch again and Blackwood continuing to stack up wins, the Avalanche suddenly look a lot more like a team with answers than one searching for them. The bigger question now is whether this is the start of something more durable or just a useful reset after a rough road trip. [Read more 🡒]
Avalanche Fans May Be Forgetting One Key Piece Of The First Cup
When Avalanche fans look back on the franchises first Stanley Cup run in 1996, the usual names come up fast: Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and the core that carried Colorado to the top. But Valeri Kamensky was right there in the middle of it, too, giving that team another dangerous offensive threat and helping turn a talented roster into a championship group. After being drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in 1988, he worked his way into the NHL and became an important part of the Avalanches early identity.
Kamenskys Colorado peak was more than a supporting role. He scored 38 goals in the regular season and added another layer in the playoffs, finishing the title run with 10 goals and 12 assists. His time with the Avalanche was a major chapter in a career that stretched across several teams and ended with 200 goals and 501 points in 637 regular-season games, a reminder that one of the key pieces of that first Cup team can be easy to overlook. [Read more 🡒]