'Here to Stay' Nathan MacKinnon Remains with Avalanche

"Avalanche for life."
In his own words, Nathan MacKinnon is remaining with the Colorado Avalanche.

"Here to stay Colorado! Thanks to my teammates, family, friends for making this possible. Avalanche for life,"

following his busy day.
Fresh off inking an eight-year contract extension with the club through the 2030-31 season - and officially begins during the 2023-24 season - MacKinnon expressed his satisfaction with the deal which broke right after tee-off at the team's annual Golf Charity Classic on Tuesday in Castle Rock.

"I had a sense the whole time it was going to get done eventually, it was only a matter of time," MacKinnon said as he addressed the media while sitting between Avalanche President of Hockey Operations Joe Sakic and General Manager Chris MacFarland. "It was a relief. I didn't want to play out the season without a deal. I didn't want to talk about it or think about it. I just want to be part of the team and try and win another Cup this season."
The former first overall pick in the 2013 NHL Draft and 27-year-old will be entering his 10th season in the league this fall. The electric centerman has been a consistent driving force for the team's high-octane offense since breaking into the lineup as a rookie in the 2013-14 season where he would go on to win the Calder Trophy that summer and became the youngest player ever to do so.
In the years since, MacKinnon has only furthered his dominance in the NHL having tallied four 30-goal seasons, amassed 648-career points (242G/406A) through 638 career regular season games - which ranks sixth on the Avalanche's all-time scoring list - and having been named a finalist for the Hart Trophy in three of the last five seasons (2017-18, 2018-19, 2020-21), he's undoubtedly a cornerstone player for the franchise.
This past season in particular, MacKinnon recorded the second-highest production among the Avalanche with 88 points (32G/56A) through 65 games - which translates to an 110-point pace through 82 games - and posted a team-high of 13 goals (24 points) in Colorado's 20-game postseason run en route to becoming Stanley Cup Champions this past June.
"Nathan's a No. 1 center, a franchise center," MacFarland said. "They're unicorns. There's not 31 of them in the league. What he does for us is really important. To have him locked up for nine years is really crucial for the short- and long-term planning for us. It's a big day."

At his press conference - and following 18 holes of golf - MacKinnon noted he's always admired players who spend the entirety of their careers with one organization, citing Sakic as an example. So, for the eight-year extension - which officially will make MacKinnon the highest-paid player in the NHL - to get finalized prior to even the start of this year's upcoming training camp, the Halifax, Nova Scotia native explained it was, "A big weight off my shoulders" and emphasized the importance of the eight-year term.
"He's an Avalanche," Joe Sakic said. "He's going to remain an Avalanche throughout his career. That's important. It shows a lot of loyalty. He's a franchise player and we're really excited that he'll remain in Colorado."
And after accomplishing the ultimate feat of winning the Stanley Cup, for the first time in his career and enjoying a brief offseason, MacKinnon is entering this upcoming season with the same focus and drive that poised him to help lead the team to victory this past June. He articulated the confidence and determination on behalf of himself and his team for the group to hopefully append on their legacy and defend their championship title, which he can fully focus on with contract talks no longer remaining a factor.
"We're not planning on just winning one," MacKinnon said. "There's always pressure. We have experience now. We've been through a lot as a group. We have most of our guys back. There's no reason why we can't repeat."