Colorado Avalanche star Cale Makar locked down an eight-year, $163.2-million contract last week, a monumental move that will crown him the highest-paid player in the entire NHL when it kicks in next year. This deal isn’t just about Makar getting paid; it has undeniably reshaped the financial landscape for players across the league, setting a whole new bar for what elite talent can command.
The NHL’s Wild West Of Contracts Is Here
Honestly, the contractual environment in the NHL has been absolutely bonkers this summer. We already saw the Flyers drop an $18-million AAV offer sheet on Leo Carlsson, and other teams weren’t shy about offering big money to young restricted free agents, pushing salaries way beyond what anyone projected. Remember Macklin Celebrini? He signed a five-year contract with an $18.8-million AAV for the Sharks, and get this, he saw it as doing them a favor. Wild, right? Now, with Makar snagging a deal so close to the maximum salary allowed, we’re not just at a new threshold, we’ve blasted past it. He’s officially set the benchmark for what one of the best players at his position should be making. His new deal eats up a whopping 17.97% of the Avalanche’s salary cap when it starts, which is the most in the NHL’s salary cap era. For reference, Carlsson’s mega offer sheet was ‘only’ 17.31%. This record keeps getting broken year after year. It’s clear: the NHL finally has to pay its star players, putting their salaries in the same realm as other global sports legends.
Are Flyers’ Young Guns Martone and Michkov Next?
So, if Makar just blew the roof off the league’s pay scale, what does this actually mean for the Philadelphia Flyers? Immediately, two names jump to mind: Porter Martone and Matvei Michkov. Both are still on their entry-level contracts, so what their next deals could look like is a complete mystery right now. For Martone, he’s only in the second year of his contract. But if he keeps playing anywhere near what we saw in his 19 NHL games last season and playoffs, then yeah, his next contract could easily be one of these monstrous megadeals. Imagine this: Martone puts up something like 65 points next season, is a clear top-six winger, contributes across all three zones, and then explodes in a massive breakout campaign for the 2027-28 season, dropping 40 goals and 90 points. If he’s that kind of player a big, physical winger scoring over a point per game wouldn’t he be considered one of the top 20 wingers in the world? Maybe even top 10 by the time he’s due for a contract! That could be as soon as next summer, potentially making Martone an All-Star in his rookie season. That would be absolutely insane!
The stakes couldn’t be higher for the Flyers looking at these young talents. With Makar’s deal resetting the market, the Flyers know exactly what they’ll be up against to retain their future stars. Keep your eyes peeled on Martone and Michkov this season; every shift, every goal, every point could be adding millions to their future contracts. Get ready, Philly, this new financial era is going to be wild!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Broad Street Hockey.
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