Avalanche sign Martin Necas to eight-year, $92 million contract

The Colorado Avalanche have announced that they’ve signed forward Martin Necas to an eight-year contract with a cap hit of $11.5 million.

Necas is in the final year of a two-year contract with a $6.5 million cap hit, and was set to be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season. He was considered to be one of the top options on the market, so the Avalanche lock him up to a deal before his price tag grows even larger. AFP Analytics projected him to get a seven-year contract at around $10 million per season on the open market, so Colorado gets him at a bit higher than that.

With the contract, Necas is locked up at 11.06% of the 2026-27 salary cap until his age-35 season. His new contract will have him tied for the 11th-highest cap hit in the league, with his cap hit comparables being Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson and Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander.

The eight years is a likely reason why Necas looked to get the deal done sooner rather than later, as the term limit for contracts will be reduced to seven years when the new collective bargaining agreement begins on July 1st, 2026.

While Necas already had a 71-point season under his belt prior to last season, Necas emerged as a player worthy of an eight-figure salary when he produced 27 goals and 56 assists for 83 points in 79 games between his time with the Carolina Hurricanes and the Avalanche. He’s continued that pace into this season with seven goals and six assists for 13 points in 11 games.

Necas was the Hurricanes’ 12th-overall selection in the 2017 NHL Draft, getting some NHL action in the following two seasons before finally becoming a consistent NHLer in the 2019-20 season. He spent parts of six seasons in Carolina before he was dealt to the Avalanche last season as part of the return for Mikko Rantanen.