The Avalanche has 20 players under contract for the coming season after signing three players Thursday.
Veteran Dan Hinote and youngsters Marek Svatos and Jeff Finger signed their one-year qualifying offers.
Hinote, 28, will earn $643,720, while Svatos and Finger signed for $450,000 each. Finger, a rookie defenseman, has a two-way contract that will pay considerably less if he doesn’t make the Avs’ roster.
The 20 players under contract raise the Avs’ payroll to $34,581,828 at their current salaries. Still unsigned is goalie David Aebischer, whose qualified salary for the coming season is $1.9 million. Promising defenseman John-Michael Liles also is unsigned.
Svatos, 23, showed promise in the 2004 playoffs for Colorado as a right wing. He had a difficult season with Hershey of the American Hockey League during the lockout, incurring a suspension and scoring only 18 goals in 72 games.
Hinote, a right wing who has battled injuries in recent seasons, played briefly for Modo of the Swedish League during the lockout. He has 22 goals in 280 career games, all with the Avs, and 206 penalty minutes.
Adrian Dater can be reached at 303-820-5454 or adater@denverpost.com.
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Avalanche salaries
With Dan Hinote, Marek Svatos and Jeff Finger signing contracts with the Avalanche on Thursday, here are Colorado players under contract (the NHL salary cap is $39 million):
Joe Sakic $6,664,797
Rob Blake $6,364,111
Milan Hejduk $3.7 million
Alex Tanguay $3.23 million
Steve Konowalchuk $1.9 million
Pierre Turgeon $1.5 million
Patrice Brisebois $1.5 million
Karlis Skrastins $1.425 million
Ian Laperriere $1.14 million
Bob Boughner $950,000
Ossi Vaananen $950,000
Andrew Brunette $800,000
Kurt Sauer $718,200
Brad May $650,000
Antti Laaksonen $646,000
Cody McCormick $450,000
Brett McLean $450,000
Dan Hinote $643,720
Jeff Finger $450,000
Marek Svatos $450,000
20 players $34,581,828
