The Colorado Avalanche shocked the hockey world by trading Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes several months prior to last year’s trade deadline.
It was a deal that nobody saw coming, including Rantanen himself, who wanted to stay in Colorado all along.
Despite that, general manager Chris MacFarland felt the move would improve the depth of his roster, bringing back two solid players, including one they believe is an emerging star in Martin Necas.
The 26-year-old was very productive throughout his first 30 games as an Av, but with a contract year looming, it looks like the Avalanche might be stuck in the exact same situation they were in with Rantanen one year ago.
NHL insider Frank Seravalli broke it all down, wondering what the future holds for Necas in Colorado.
“I’m fascinated by what happens with Marty Necas and the Avs. Because they’re right back in the same situation that they were this time last year with Mikko Rantanen. Didn’t want to pay him what he was due, they ended up moving him well before the trade deadline back in January. Now, they acquire Marty Necas in that deal, north of a point-per-game player. And he wants to be paid. What does that number look like? How close is it to what the Rantanen deal looked like?” Seravalli said.
“If he has another north of point-per-game season, this is just numbers; he’s going to be in that $10 million a year range. Which, man, you’re just right back at square one. So, not an easy situation to be in if you’re Chris MacFarland and the Colorado Avalanche,” Seravalli added.
The Avalanche are experiencing deja-vu with Martin Necas’ contract situation 😵💫
(w/ @frank_seravalli) pic.twitter.com/DuFZvhYeps
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) September 16, 2025
Necas is set to enter the final season of the two-year, $13 million contract he originally signed with the Hurricanes in 2024.
What is Necas worth?
Martin Necas is a very good player, and he’s undoubtedly going to earn a raise from his current $6.5 million average annual salary. That being said, $10+ million is a lot to stomach.
While the skilled winger produced at over a point-per-game clip last season, it was the first time he’s done so in his six-year NHL career. Necas had never really come close to that level of production in previous years, which begs the question: was 2024-25 an outlier?
Seravalli also mentions that Colorado likely could have re-signed Rantanen for less than $12 million annually on an eight-year deal, which, looking back on it now, would have been an absolute steal, especially given the numbers Necas is seeking.
The idea in trading Rantanen was to accumulate cap space and spend it on multiple players, becoming a deeper team in the process. Instead, it looks like they may be forced to pay a similar price for a much lesser player than what they already had.
