DENVER — Joe Sakic wasn’t content to simply run it back. Far from it, even if the Colorado Avalanche did have the best record in the regular season.
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“Super Joe,” his nickname as a Hall of Fame player , has certainly lived up to his reputation of “Trader Joe” since stepping back into his role of GM for the Avalanche. He already has orchestrated several deals in this young offseason.
Because if there’s one thing Sakic knows all about, it’s championship windows. His squad, back in the day, won a pair of Stanley Cup trophies in 1996 and 2001.
The Avalanche are in the midst of another window with Nathan MacKinnon, captain Gabriel Landeskog and Cale Makar leading the way (they won in 2022). Sakic is giving the team a mini-reboot after the Avalanche were swept by the Vegas Golden Knights in the Western Conference Final.
“We’re trying to move on to next year, but if we’ve got to look back, that’s what it was — we just didn’t play well,” Sakic said Friday night before the start of the NHL draft. “We’re always looking to find a way to just, even if it’s a little bit better, to try and get better.”
Sakic inherited the GM job again — on top of his responsibilities as president of hockey operations — when Chris MacFarland recently left for the front office of the Nashville Predators.
The good friends already have executed several trades, with Sakic sending Ross Colton to MacFarland’s Predators and later Jack Drury .
“We weren’t friends,” Sakic cracked. “No, it was good. (MacFarland) did what he thought was best for his group. I thought we did what was best for our group. Obviously, those decisions for us really were cap decisions, freed up some space. We couldn’t have brought everybody back.”
Not done tinkering with the roster, Sakic made a splashy deal with Columbus that sent Valeri Nichushkin to the Blue Jackets for draft picks. It’s a way to free up space given Nichushkin had four more seasons left on his contract at a salary cap hit of $6.125 million. That savings could be used to negotiate a long-term extension with Makar, a two-time Norris Trophy winner as the league’s top defenseman.
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“They’re tough decisions,” Sakic said. “But when you have a cap you’re dealing with and you’re trying to make the best decisions for your team to try and get under — it was a tough phone call to make to Val for the great things he’s done for our organization.”
Sakic used some of the resources to re-sign blueliners Brent Burns and Brett Kulak on Friday. The 41-year-old Burns will return for a 23rd season and another crack at a Stanley Cup title that’s eluded him. He is a powerful leader in the locker room and a reliable player on the ice. Burns enters the 2026-27 season needing 57 games to tie Phil Kessel for the longest regular-season ironman streak in NHL history.
Burns is set to earn the veteran minimum of $850,000 and can make up to $3 million in incentives, according to a person familiar with the deal. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because financial terms were not disclosed.
Sakic certainly knows the value of a grizzled defenseman: He had Hall of Famer Ray Bourque on board when the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup in 2001.
Also back is Kulak, who agreed to a five-year contract from the Avalanche worth a reported $22.5 million. The 32-year-old Kulak was acquired by the Avalanche on Feb. 24 as part of a deal with Pittsburgh. He averaged just over 19 minutes of ice time in 27 regular-season games.
Sakic doesn’t figure to be done revamping this roster, either. The Avalanche could always use another forward or two.
“It’s going to be the players that we feel are a good fit for us, for what we’re trying to do,” Sakic said. “Hopefully it works out. If it doesn’t work out, we’re going to have a good amount of cap space and draft capital for things to happen during the year.
“There’s no panic on our end. We’re not rushed. If we’ve got to start out with some kids this year to see what they got, what they can do, we’re perfectly happy with that as well.”
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AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno in New York contributed to this report.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL
