It’s August, and the Colorado Avalanche still haven’t signed Cale Makar to an extension beyond the 2026-27 season, something they were able to do as early as July 1. There’s no reason to panic, as it’s worth noting that fellow star defenseman Quinn Hughes also remains unsigned past this upcoming season. It raises an interesting question.

Are the two waiting on each other?

The situations aren’t identical. Hughes and the Minnesota Wild reportedly continue to negotiate, but the expectation is that the Hughes extension could be a shorter-term deal of three or four years, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.

Makar’s situation is different. The Avalanche would love to lock him into the maximum eight-year extension before Sept. 16, when the new CBA reduces the maximum contract length by one year. If Makar is also seeking the full eight years — and there’s no indication he isn’t — both sides have every reason to get something done over the next six weeks.

That Sept. 16 date represents the first meaningful deadline. It’s not a disaster if an agreement isn’t reached by then, but it’s the first logical checkpoint because the rules change after that. Don’t forget, Nathan MacKinnon didn’t sign his extension in 2022 until late September. The following year, it took until early October for Devon Toews to do the same.

The biggest storyline, though, isn’t whether Makar signs. Avalanche general manager Joe Sakic has made it clear he expects Makar to spend his entire career in Colorado. Nor is it when he signs. Sakic said in June that negotiations for players like Makar and Artturi Lehkonen would likely be handled later in the offseason rather than around July 1.

The real question is much simpler.

What will the contract look like? More specifically, will it make Makar the highest-paid player in NHL history?

San Jose Sharks superstar Macklin Celebrini recently signed a five-year extension that begins in 2027-28 with an $18.8 million AAV, surpassing Leo Carlsson’s league-leading $18 million cap hit for 2026-27.

If Makar eclipses Celebrini, he’d more than double his current $9 million cap hit. And if he follows the same blueprint Nathan MacKinnon used in 2022 of signing for just $100,000 more than the league’s highest-paid player, then an eight-year deal would carry a $151.2 million total value, far and away the richest contract the NHL has ever seen.

Whether that happens over the next six weeks or later remains to be seen. Like Celebrini, anything below the projected maximum AAV of $20.8 million would effectively amount to a discount.

For a player widely regarded as the NHL’s best defenseman, and one who has a legitimate chance to finish his career as the greatest defenseman the game has ever seen, the next contract won’t just reshape Colorado’s future. It could again reset the market for elite players across the league.

It’ll be interesting to see how it all unfolds.