NHL teams are rushing to re-sign players to eight-year contracts while they still can, before midnight when the new collective bargaining agreement kicks in and sets a new ceiling of seven years.

Defenseman Cale Makar is now the highest-paid player in NHL history after signing a $163.2 million, eight-year extension with the Colorado Avalanche.

Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche agreed to a $163.2 million, eight-year extension on Friday that will make him the highest paid player in league history.

NHL free agency has some big names still available, including Patrick Kane and Vladimir Tarasenko.

Tomas Hertl took a backhand pass from Colton Sissons and beat Frederik Andersen from the slot with 3:24 left, lifting the Vegas Golden Knights past the Carolina Hurricanes 5-4 in Tuesday night’s opener of the Stanley Cup Final.

Mark Stone and Cole Smith scored for Vegas and the Golden Knights suffocated Colorado’s high-powered offense to beat the Avalanche 2-1 on Tuesday night and for an unthinkable sweep to make their third Stanley Cup Final in nine seasons.

Tomas Hertl weaved his way toward the slot and broke a tie at 8:21 of the third period as the Golden Knights overcame a three-goal deficit Sunday night to beat Colorado 5-3 and move within a victory of their third Stanley Cup Final appearance in nine years.

Jack Eichel and Ivan Barbashev scored in a 2:07 span in the third period and the Vegas Golden Knights stunned the Colorado Avalanche 3-1 on Friday night to take a 2-0 lead in the Western Conference Final.

A Western Conference Final loaded with offensive firepower was ignited by the unlikeliest of sparkplugs.

Dylan Coghlan scored his first Stanley Cup playoff goal to get Vegas rolling, Carter Hart made 36 saves and the Golden Knights opened the Western Conference final by holding off the Colorado Avalanche 4-2 on Wednesday night.

At times, especially early, the Colorado Avalanche looked disjointed on defense.

The Colorado Avalanche advanced to the Western Conference final after a thrilling comeback win against the Minnesota Wild.

Cale Makar scored twice in the third period after returning from an earlier injury and the Colorado Avalanche overcame blowing a three-goal lead to beat the Minnesota Wild 9-6 on Sunday night in a wacky Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.

Nathan MacKinnon had two goals and an assist, Nicolas Roy and Devon Toews scored in the third period, and the top-seeded Colorado Avalanche swept the Los Angeles Kings out of the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a 5-1 victory.

Cale Makar scored the tiebreaking goal, Scott Wedgewood made 24 saves and the top-seeded Colorado Avalanche moved to the brink of the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs with a 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Kings in Game 3 of their first-round series.

Logan O’Connor scored for the first time in more than a year, Scott Wedgewood stopped 24 shots in his first Stanley Cup playoffs start and the top-seeded Colorado Avalanche beat the Los Angeles Kings 2-1 in Game 1 on Sunday.

The Stanley Cup will have a new home this year after the back-to-back champion Florida Panthers had their season derailed by injuries.

Connor McDavid scored twice to give him 401 career goals and 1,200 points, sparking the Edmonton Oilers to a 5-2 victory over the Utah Mammoth.

Nathan MacKinnon scored the go-ahead goal with 35.2 seconds left to help Canada survive another scare at the Olympics, rallying to beat Finland 3-2 in the semifinals and advance to the men’s gold-medal game.

The NHL has arrived at the Milan Cortina Olympics.

USA Hockey general manager Bill Guerin told players at Olympic orientation in August that nothing short of a gold medal will suffice in Milan.

Macklin Celebrini, the 19-year-old star for the San Jose Sharks, is heading to the Winter Olympics.

The Minnesota Wild have acquired Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks in the biggest blockbuster trade of the NHL season.

The Colorado Avalanche have signed Martin Necas to an eight-year contract extension through 2034.

Cale Makar has noticed major changes in college hockey since he left UMass for the NHL five years ago.

Hockey is seeing a surge in popularity and buzz, fed by the 4 Nations tournament, Alex Ovechkin’s stirring run to the NHL career goals record and the Florida Panthers repeating as Stanley Cup champions.

The U.S. named Brady and Matthew Tkachuk, Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel, Quinn Hughes and Charlie McAvoy as its first six players for the 2026 Olympics.

Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck has won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP and the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender.

Cale Makar captured the Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman for a second time in four seasons.

Mikko Rantanen carried the Dallas Stars past his former team in the first round of the NHL playoffs.

Mikko Rantanen would have never believed that he would have a hat trick in a Game 7 against Colorado.

Nathan MacKinnon received credit for a go-ahead goal with 10:56 remaining after the puck bounced off the shoulder of a Dallas player and the Colorado Avalanche staved off elimination by rallying to beat the Stars 7-4 in Game 6.

Colorado captain Gabriel Landeskog scored his first NHL goal in nearly three years in the second period of Game 4 against Dallas in a 4-0 win.

Tyler Seguin scored at 5:31 of overtime after Dallas killed a late double-minor penalty, and the Stars beat Colorado 2-1 in Game 3 on Wednesday night in a game that featured the return of Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog.

Colorado Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog returned to the lineup and played his first NHL game in nearly three years Wednesday night in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Dallas Stars in Game 3.

New Colorado goalie Mackenzie Blackwood is already having a big impact on the Avalanche in their eighth consecutive postseason.

Nathan MacKinnon had a part in both of Colorado’s strange goals in the second period before adding an empty-netter late as the Avalanche beat the Dallas Stars 5-1 in the opener of their first-round Western Conference playoff series.

Gabriel Landeskog played in a professional game Friday night for the first time in nearly three years as he suited up with the Colorado Eagles of the American Hockey League.

The ever-modest Cale Makar did all he could to downplay his two-goal, four-assist night.

The Colorado Avalanche trio of Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Devon Toews had an easy excuse for not attending practice on Friday.

Connor McDavid played in the World Cup of Hockey in 2016, but it was with the 23-and-under Team North America, not Canada.

Canada defenseman Shea Theodore is out for the rest of the 4 Nations Face-Off because of injury.

It didn’t take much to stir Jack Eichel’s national pride in looking ahead to representing the United States at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.

The U.

While a vast majority of the 1,312 NHL games through June will take place in North America, the spotlight this season is on international play.

Matt Duchene scored at 11:42 of the second overtime after being involved in a play that led to a goal disallowed for goaltender interference in the first OT and the Dallas Stars advanced to the Western Conference final with a 2-1 victory over the Colorado Avalanche in Game 6.

Colorado defenseman Cale Makar scored two goals, the second after Casey Mittelstadt’s go-ahead tally in the third period and the Avalanche beat top-seeded Dallas 5-3 in Game 5.

The Colorado Avalanche had gone a full week since wrapping up their first-round series, and were down three goals in the first period on the road against the top-seeded team.

Miles Wood scored on a backhander 11:03 into overtime into overtime and the Colorado Avalanche, after trailing by three goals in the first period, beat the top-seeded Dallas Stars 4-3 in the opener of their second-round Western Conference series.

Fresh off adding center Casey Mittelstadt and defenseman Sean Walker, the Colorado Avalanche made two more moves by bringing in forward Yakov Trenin from Nashville and forward Brandon Duhaime from Minnesota.

NHL players are returning to the Olympics for the first time in more than a decade.

Court documents show five players from Canada's 2018 world junior team have been charged with sexual assault.

Artturi Lehkonen scored twice, including an empty-net goal in the closing seconds, and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Seattle Kraken 4-1 to force a Game 7 in their first-round playoff series.

Colorado Avalanche star defenseman Cale Makar has been suspended one game by the NHL for his hit on Seattle’s Jared McCann in the first period of Game 4.

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar is back in concussion protocol.

The NHL took advantage of holding All-Star Weekend in South Florida by holding two Skills Competition events outside in the sun.

Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin were among the first round of All-Star selections revealed by the NHL.

Artturi Lehkonen and Valeri Nichushkin each scored two power-play goals, Mikko Rantanen had four assists and the fast-skating Colorado Avalanche began their Stanley Cup title defense with a 5-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Colorado Avalanche are making Nathan MacKinnon the highest-paid player in the NHL’s salary cap era.

Nathan MacKinnon expects to sign contract extension with the Colorado Avalanche soon.

The parade through the streets of Denver to celebrate the Colorado Avalanche’s Stanley Cup title offered a little bit of everything.

The city will celebrate the Colorado Avalanche’s Stanley Cup title with a parade through the streets of downtown Denver.

The Colorado Avalanche winning the Stanley Cup showed the value of speed and skill in a league dramatically tilting in that direction.

Cale Makar has won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP after leading the Colorado Avalanche to their first Stanley Cup title since 2001 and third in franchise history.

The Colorado Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup after dethroning the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Colorado Avalanche were stymied in their quest to close out the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final on Friday night.

The Tampa Bay Lightning spoiled Colorado’s party and they are still in the hunt for a third straight Stanley Cup title after beating the Avalanche 3-2 in Game 5.

The fast-flying Colorado Avalanche have zoomed out to a 2-0 series lead over Tampa Bay in the Stanley Cup Final.

“Mr. Game 7” is back in the Stanley Cup Final, but in a much different role than before.

The Tampa Bay Lightning shrugged off their overtime loss to Colorado in the opener of the Stanley Cup Final.

The Colorado Avalanche overwhelmed the Tampa Bay Lightning 7-0 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final to take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series.

The Stanley Cup Final between the Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning shows the value of hitting on top picks in the NHL draft.

Colorado Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon has upped his game by dialing it down.

Andre Burakovsky scored 1:23 into overtime and the Colorado Avalanche opened the Stanley Cup Final with a 4-3 victory over the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday night.

The Stanley Cup Final is a showdown between the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning and the high-scoring Colorado Avalanche.

The Colorado Avalanche didn't need to be fully healthy to sweep the Edmonton Oilers in the Western Conference final.

J.

Artturi Lehkonen scored twice, Darcy Kuemper stopped 29 shots and the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 5-2 in Game 3 of their second-round series.

David Perron scored twice, Jordan Binnington made 30 saves and the St. Louis Blues beat the Colorado Avalanche 4-1 to tie their second-round series at a game apiece.

Josh Manson scored 8:02 into overtime, Darcy Kuemper made 23 saves in his return to the net from an eye injury, and the Colorado Avalanche beat the St. Louis Blues 3-2 in Game 1 of their second-round series.

The start of the NHL playoffs included more penalties called than any other first round in almost a decade.

The New York Rangers will play the Carolina Hurricanes in the second round of the NHL playoffs.

Valeri Nichushkin scored the game-winning goal with 7:58 left, and the Colorado Avalanche became the first team to advance to the second round Monday night by finishing a sweep of the Nashville Predators 5-3 Monday night.

Gabriel Landeskog scored twice in the second period, and the top-seeded Colorado Avalanche beat the Nashville Predators 7-3 for a commanding 3-0 lead in their first-round Western Conference series.

Cale Makar scored 8:31 into overtime, Darcy Kuemper made 25 saves on his 32nd birthday and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Nashville Predators 2-1 to take a 2-0 lead in the first-round playoff series.

Nathan MacKinnon and Devon Toews scored 22 seconds apart in a five-goal first period, sending the Colorado Avalanche to a 7-2 win over the Nashville Predators in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series.

Nathan MacKinnon had three goals and two assists, Nicolas Aube-Kubel scored twice in a dominant first period and the Colorado Avalanche set a franchise record with their 53rd win by routing the Los Angeles Kings 9-3.

Ethan Bear scored the game’s first goal with 5:40 left and Sebastian Aho added an empty-netter to help the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Colorado Avalanche 2-0 on Thursday night.

Gabriel Landeskog tied the game with 36.5 seconds left in regulation and Cale Makar scored a power-play goal 3:01 into overtime as the Colorado Avalanche rallied past the Boston Bruins 4-3 for their 17th straight home victory.

Nazem Kadri and Mikko Rantanen scored, Pavel Francouz made 23 saves for his third career shutout and the Colorado Avalanche beat the Chicago Blackhawks 2-0 to extend their franchise-record home winning streak to 16 games.

Washington star Alexander Ovechkin and high-scoring Edmonton teammates Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl headline the rosters for the NHL All-Star Weekend announced Thursday.

The Colorado Avalanche became the first team in 26 years to score seven goals in three straight games with a 7-3 victory over the Detroit Red Wings.

Erik Johnson had a goal and an assist, and the Colorado Avalanche beat Philadelphia 7-5 to hand the Flyers their ninth straight loss just hours after they fired coach Alain Vigneault.

The end of the NHL draft only ushers in more questions about what's coming next this offseason.

The Philadelphia Flyers have traded Jakub Voracek to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Cam Atkinson in the first major trade on the second day of the NHL draft.

Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid ran away in the voting to win his second Hart Trophy as NHL MVP after leading the league in points.

Montreal's Cole Caufield is the best of a handful of college hockey stars who went from playing at the NCAA level this season to jumping right into the NHL playoffs.

Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid, Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews and Colorado Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon have been named finalists for the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP.

Nathan MacKinnon and Gabriel Landeskog each scored twice as the well-rested Colorado Avalanche made quick work of Vegas with their speed, beating the Golden Knights 7-1 in a skirmish-filled Game 1 of their second-round playoff series.

Philipp Grubauer made 18 saves and Gabriel Landeskog scored the go-ahead goal in the second period to lift Colorado to a series sweep of the St. Louis Blues with a 5-2 win in Game 4 of the West Division series.