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The Colorado Avalanche stunned the hockey world on Friday night, making one of the biggest blockbuster trades of the 21st century that sent superstar forward Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes.
The only logical explanation for the Avs giving up a player of Rantanen's caliber is that the front office was worried the pending unrestricted free agent would command too much money on his next contract. The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun shed some more light on that line of thinking on Saturday morning.
“Rantanen was willing to continue negotiating throughout the season with Colorado. In fact, both sides had more contract talks this past week,” reported the hockey insider. “Just couldn't find enough common ground. The Avs, in the end, made the calculation they were never going to get there on a number.”
Nathan MacKinnon currently leads Colorado's payroll at a $12.6 million AAV, and there were rumblings that Rantanen was looking for even more money than that. Although he's a superstar, it would be difficult for Avalanche general manager Chris MacFarland to give the Finn more money than the Canadian.
MacKinnon won his first Hart Trophy last season and is right in the thick of the conversation to go back-to-back in 2025 — not to mention he's leading the NHL in scoring with 75 points in 49 games.
Still, Rantanen is a monumental loss for this team, and the acquisitions of Marty Necas and Jack Drury will not be able to fully replace what the 2022 Stanley Cup champion brought to the table in Denver.
Mikko Rantanen is one of the best players traded in the 21st century
The only players who have recorded more points than Rantanen over the past five National Hockey League seasons are MacKinnon, Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid and Artemi Panarin. End of list.
He's a true superstar in every sense of the word; “a top line winger whose size, finishing touch, and passing ability make him one of the toughest players to defend in the league,” wrote well-regarded hockey scribe JFresh. “Can score from anywhere, great net-front presence, elite puck protector.”
Rantanen has again been terrific in 2024-25, with 25 goals and 64 points in 49 games — good for sixth in league scoring. He'll now move to a Hurricanes team that has all of the pieces in place but was missing a true, elite game-breaking talent.
The 28-year-old figures to play alongside countryman Sebastian Aho on the top line, who will also probably be at the forefront of the lobbying to convince Rantanen to sign in Raleigh long-term.
For Colorado, there is an elite player coming back. Necas was leading the Hurricanes with 55 points in 49 games before the trade, and he should fit in well on a line with MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin. He'll also — like Rantanen — immediately be inserted onto the top powerplay with his new team.
Rantanen will be in the lineup when the Hurricanes visit New York to play the Islanders on Saturday night. Both Necas and Drury are also expected to suit up for the Avalanche against the Boston Bruins in a 1:00 p.m. ET matinee at TD Garden.
The era of Mikko Rantanen in Colorado is over; the franchise decided either it couldn't or wouldn't pay the star player. But one thing is for sure: someone will on July 1.
