Avalanche defensemen Makar and Johnson have nothing but love for Rantanen

Former Colorado Avalanche superstar Mikko Rantanen made his return to Ball Arena on Sunday.

And even though the crowd gave him a mixed reaction with some cheers and some boos, his ex-teammates had nothing but praise after a 4-3 OT win over the Dallas Stars.

Defensemen Cale Makar and Erik Johnson, who both won the Stanley Cup in 2022 with Rantanen, met with the media and spoke glowingly. Despite the awkward circumstances under which he left town, with Rantanen maintaining he wanted to stay, there are no hard feelings.

A group of players even went to dinner with Rantanen on Saturday night, one in which he picked up the bill.

Avalanches defenseman Erik Johnson has a ton of nice things to say about Mikko Rantanen, says he paid for dinner last night and will always remember him as a Stanley Cup champion. Also mentions Wayne Gretzky once got traded. It’s a business. pic.twitter.com/9C5mqwYMnz

— Will Petersen (@PetersenWill) March 16, 2025

“We love Mikko. He’s an iconic Avalanche forever. What he did for this organization, helped us win the Cup, he’s a tremendous person, a tremendous player. We loved his as a teammate, it’s just the unfortunate side of the business that happens,” Johnson said.

That business included Rantanen playing 13 games with the Carolina Hurricanes after the initial trade, before he was moved to the Stars right before the NHL trade deadline. He signed an eight-year extension worth $12 million per season in Dallas.

Johnson mentioned it “stings” to see Rantanen in a Stars jersey, but they’ll always love him.

As for Makar, he offered a similar message, clearly there’s no ill-will and the pair remains friends. Still, Makar isn’t thrilled to see him playing for a rival, based on Rantanen’s skill alone.

Cale Makar says Mikko Rantanen is a “great guy” and there was nothing to hash out at dinner last night. He’s glad he’ll be settled in a new place for a long time, but it’s “unfortunate” they’ll see a bunch of Rantanen moving forward. pic.twitter.com/6hdA9xaEkw

— Will Petersen (@PetersenWill) March 16, 2025

“It’s always good to see Mikko. It’s unfortunate we’ll be seeing a lot more of him now, but yeah it’s good,” Makar said.

Makar said there was nothing to be hashed out at the dinner, after Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog said on a the “Spittin’ Chiclets” podcast last week that’s something they’d do. Landeskog was probably joking, something Makar hinted at.

And finally, head coach Jared Bednar spoke on Rantanen, not wanting to comment on if the team is now better since his trade and several others, but also saying all the right things.

Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar isn’t going to compare the team before the Mikko Rantanen trade and after, but says Colorado is in a “good spot” as well as Mikko being in one in Dallas. Mentions life goes on. pic.twitter.com/YRofcu7nr5

— Will Petersen (@PetersenWill) March 16, 2025

“We’re in a good spot, Mikko’s in a good spot in Dallas. We’re happy for him and we’re in a good spot here, so life goes on,” Bednar said.

This is probably the first chapter of a compelling drama with the Avalanche and Stars likely to meet in Round 1 of the playoffs next month.

Rantanen will be back in Denver plenty during that series, and while it might be all love off the ice, it will be highly competitive on it.