Devon Toews and Cale Makar will continue to terrorize opposing offenses for a long time in Denver. On Friday, the Colorado Avalanche announced that Toews signed a seven-year contract extension worth $50.75 million.
The extension will kick in next year with Toews, 29, playing out the final year of his current contract in 2023-24. From there, Toews’ annual salary cap hit will be $7.25 million per year through the 2030-31 season, which is a bargain for a legitimate top-pairing defenseman.
Since being acquired by the Avalanche in 2020, Toews has become a key cog on the blue line, along with Makar. Toews helped lead the Avs to a Stanley Cup in 2022, and he wants to add some more down the line.
“I couldn’t be more excited to remain with the Avalanche and continue to build upon what we’ve accomplished so far,” Toews said in a statement. “I’d like to thank the Kroenke family, Joe Sakic, Chris MacFarland and the coaching staff for their trust and belief in me. Denver has become home to my family and we love being a part of this community. I’m excited to get this deal done and focus on our goal of bringing the Stanley Cup back to Colorado.”
Prior to the 2020-21 season, Colorado sent a pair of second-round draft picks to the New York Islanders in exchange for Toews. Over the last few years, that trade has looked like one of the bigger steals in recent memory.
In his 200 games with the Avs, Toews has tallied 29 goals and 110 assists while dominating play at five-on-five. Last year, Colorado controlled 55.8% of the expected goals and 59.4% of the actual goals with Toews on the ice at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick.
On most other teams, Toews would be a No. 1 defenseman, but Makar makes Toews a huge luxury for Colorado. Now, that pairing will be together through at least the 2026-27 campaign.
