DENVER – The Colorado Avalanche Hockey Club announced today that the team has signed defenseman Devon Toews to a seven-year contract extension that runs from the 2024-25 season to 2030-31.
Colorado acquired Toews from the New York Islanders on Oct. 12, 2020 in exchange for a second-round selection in the 2021 NHL Draft and a second-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft. Toews is a league-best +122 since joining the Avalanche prior to the 2020-21 campaign, far ahead of the next closest player (Matthew Tkachuk, +92). In three seasons with Colorado, Toews has recorded 139 points (29g/110a) in 200 regular-season games and added 30 points (7g/23a) in 37 playoff contests. His 169 combined points during this stretch ranks sixth among NHL defensemen. The Avs are 139-45-16 (.735) in the regular season with Toews in the lineup since he joined the club.
Last season (2022-23), Toews led the Avalanche and finished sixth in the NHL with a +39 rating. He finished second among team defensemen in scoring with 50 points (7g/43a) while appearing in a career-high 80 games. The Abbotsford, B.C., native ranked second on the team and eighth in the NHL in average time-on-ice (25:06) and led the club in blocked shots (138).
Toews, 29, went on to lead the team in assists (eight) and finish second in points (nine) in seven games during the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs. His 1.29 points-per-game average ranked second among all NHL defensemen who appeared in at least seven playoff games, trailing only Evan Bouchard (1.42). Toews’ eight assists tied the franchise record for most helpers by a defenseman in a single playoff series, equaling the mark shared by Risto Siltanen in the 1987 Divisional Semifinals against Hartford and Samuel Girard in the second round of the 2020 playoffs against Dallas. Toews’ nine points tied for the second-most ever by a Colorado/Quebec blueliner in a single playoff series, one shy of Cale Makar’s record 10 in the 2022 First Round against Nashville.
“Getting a deal done with Devon at the start of the season was a priority for us,” said Avalanche General Manager Chris MacFarland. “He has emerged as one of the best defensemen in the NHL and is a huge part of the core of this team. He logs heavy minutes in all situations—5-on-5, power play and penalty kill—plays against the opposition’s top lines and is one of the top point-producing defenders in the game as well. And most importantly, he is one of our team leaders both on and off the ice. We’re thrilled to have him in an Avalanche sweater for the next eight years.”
“I couldn’t be more excited to remain with the Avalanche and continue to build upon what we’ve accomplished so far,” said Toews. “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.”
Selected by the Islanders in the fourth round (108th overall) of the 2014 NHL Draft, Toews has recorded 185 points (40g/145a) in 316 career NHL regular-season contests and added 45 points (10g/35a) in 67 Stanley Cup Playoff games. Following his trade from the Islanders to the Avalanche, Toews signed a four-year deal with Colorado on Oct. 27, 2020
In 2021-22, Toews tied for ninth among NHL defensemen with a career-high 57 points (13g/44a) in 66 games. His 13 goals also tied for ninth among NHL rearguards and he ranked fourth in the NHL and first among all defensemen with a +52 plus/minus rating. Toews’ +52 rating was a franchise record for a defender and equaled the highest mark by any Colorado skater since the team relocated to Denver (Peter Forsberg and Milan Hejduk were both +52 in 2002-03). Toews recorded 15 points (5g/10a) in 20 playoff games for the Stanley Cup champions, ranking fourth among NHL defensemen in scoring. His five goals tied Adam Fox for second among league blueliners behind only Makar (eight).
During his first season with the Avalanche (2020-21), Toews led all Colorado defensemen with nine goals and finished third among team blueliners with 31 points (9g/22a) in 53 games. His nine goals tied him for seventh among NHL defensemen. He led the Avalanche and ranked 10th in the NHL in average ice time (24:46). Toews finished second on the Avs with a +29 plus/minus rating, tied for second in the NHL, and led the club with a +10 rating during the postseason.
Toews appeared in all 68 games for the Islanders during his first full NHL season in 2019-20, tallying 28 points (6g/22a). His six goals and 28 points finished second among New York defenders. The 6-foot-1, 191-pound rearguard went on to skate in all 22 playoff games for the Islanders, where he tied for first among team defensemen with 10 points (2g/8a).
Toews (pronounced: deh-VAHN TAYVS) made his NHL debut on Dec. 23, 2018 at Dallas and spent the rest of the 2018-19 campaign with the Islanders, recording 18 points (5g/13a) in 48 games. He also dressed in eight playoff contests during the 2019 postseason and led all team defensemen with five points (1g/4a).
Toews began his professional career with the American Hockey League’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers in 2016-17, collecting 45 points (5g/40a) in 76 games en route to being named to the AHL All-Rookie Team. Toews, who played in the 2016-17 AHL All-Star Game, led all rookies in assists that year while his 45 points tied for first among rookie defensemen. He registered 86 total points (18g/68a) in 130 AHL games with Bridgeport.
The left-shot defender played three seasons at Quinnipiac University (ECAC) from 2013-16, where he totaled 67 points (12g/55a) in 108 collegiate games. He was named to the ECAC Second All-Star Team following his third and final season of 2015-16. Prior to enrolling at Quinnipiac, Toews played two years with the Surrey Eagles of the British Columbia Hockey League. He was selected to the BCHL All-Rookie Team in 2011-12 and followed that up by being named to the BCHL (Coastal) First All-Star Team and garnering BCHL (Coastal) Best Defenseman honors in 2012-13.
