TORONTO — Sam Malinski’s breakout season has made him a very wealthy man.
An undrafted free agent who took a less traditional path to the NHL, Malinski signed a four-year, $19 million contract Tuesday with the Colorado Avalanche. The annual average value of the deal is $4.75 million, a league source confirmed.
“(Negotiations) have been going on for kind of the past few weeks,” Malinski said. “So just really excited and happy to get it done with kind of earlier rather than later. … Any time you’re playing in this business, you don’t really have that stability in knowing where you’re going to play and where you’re going to live each year. Now that I’m kind of signed to a little bit of term, it’s really nice to have that stability.”
The Avs signed Malinski as an undrafted free agent in March 2023 after four years at Cornell. Already 24 years old when Colorado signed him, Malinski faced long odds to become an NHL regular, let alone an impact player worthy of a long-term commitment.
He was a part-time player for the Avs as a first-year pro in 2023-24, and has steadily worked his way both into and up the depth chart for Colorado. Malinski has three goals and 24 points in 50 games this season. That’s one less point than he had in 99 games across the previous two seasons.
“I think it’s well deserved,” Avs coach Jared Bednar said. “Continuously getting better and better — year over year, month over month, really, for us — the improvement of his defensive game for me this year, from the start of the year even to now for a long stretch has been really impressive. We’ve talked about how we like the way he skates, how he can get involved in the offensive side of the game, the way he shoots the puck. I think that part of his game is elevated for us this year with some of the guys out of the lineup and playing in different spots.
“He looks better and better now playing the left (side) than he did earlier in the year. He struggled with it a little bit, but now he’s comfortable. Cale (Makar) obviously can make that a little bit easier job for him, so he’s becoming a versatile player for us.”
Listed at 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds, Malinski has drawn some comparisons to Makar because of their similar size and both are offensively gifted right-handed shots. A year ago, Malinski excelled in a third-pairing role but struggled at times when he was needed up in the lineup as an injury replacement.
This season, he’s been a big part of why the Avs are the league’s best team. He’s dominated in a third-pairing role when everyone is healthy, but also has held his own when pressed into more responsibility with Devon Toews out of the lineup.
“I’m really happy for him,” Avs defenseman Josh Manson said. “Really excited for us. He’s really turned into a player. We could always see it. We knew it was in there. I think it’s just kind of coming out of him, the confidence he needed in himself maybe to flourish a little bit. He’s proven that he earned a contract like that, and I think the organization should be excited to have him just as the players here are.”
Malinski, who will turn 28 this summer, is now under contract through 2029-30. He’s the eighth player on the roster with a deal that runs through at least 2030, but only the second defenseman along with Toews. Brent Burns is a pending free agent after this season, Makar and Samuel Girard are up after next year and Manson will be an unrestricted free agent in 2029.
Odds for undrafted players are typically long to become an NHL regular, let alone an impact guy worthy of a long-term commitment. The Avs, who have traded away draft picks and prospects for years in pursuit of NHL players able to help chase the Stanley Cup, have become one of the most active franchises in the undrafted free agent market. Logan O’Connor, who signed a six-year contract in Sept. 2024, is also one of the team’s development success stories.
“I’ve definitely thought back on the journey,” Malinski said. “I think that’s something my mom tells me, reminders to look back at all the people that have helped me get to where I am. It definitely hasn’t been the typical route. It’s been a grind and long journey, for sure.”
FOOTNOTES: Injured players Gabe Landeskog, Devon Toews and Ross Colton all practiced Tuesday with the Avs at the Maple Leafs’ practice facility. It was Landeskog’s first practice with the team after skating by himself a couple of times in recent days. Bednar said the Avs captain is trending towards being able to play for Sweden in the 2026 Winter Olympics, and didn’t rule out him playing for Colorado before the break. He said Colton is doubtful to play Wednesday night in Ottawa, while Toews is definitely out. Both players could return at some point during this road trip.
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