For Colorado Eagles fans, the turnover in Loveland this offseason is starting to feel less like roster tweaks and more like a full reset — and now another familiar name is gone from the blue line.
The Washington Capitals have signed veteran defenseman Jacob MacDonald to a one-year, two-way contract, ending his second stint with the Eagles. The deal was announced by Capitals senior vice president and general manager Chris Patrick.
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For Colorado, it’s the latest in a string of departures that has quietly stripped away much of the core that helped power a deep Calder Cup Playoff run just a season ago.
Head coach Mark Letestu, who guided the Eagles to the Western Conference Final in his first year behind the bench, was poached by the Vegas Golden Knights to join their staff as an assistant coach. On the back end, Jack Ahcan departed on a two-year, two-way deal with the Nashville Predators, taking one of Colorado’s most reliable puck-moving defensemen with him. Up front, veteran forward T.J. Tynan, a long-time fixture across multiple stints in the organization, also moved on, signing with the Springfield Thunderbirds.
Now MacDonald joins that list — and in some ways, his exit hits differently.
At 33, he was one of the most productive offensive defensemen the AHL has seen in the modern era, and was still producing when healthy.
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In an injury-shortened 2025-26 season with the Eagles, MacDonald still managed 12 points (4 goals, 8 assists) in just 17 regular-season games. He added two more points in 17 playoff appearances as Colorado pushed all the way to the Western Conference Final.
But it’s his body of work that sets him apart.
MacDonald ranks seventh all-time among AHL defensemen in goals with 103, a rare milestone for a blueliner. His peak came in 2024-25, when he put together one of the most dominant seasons by a defenseman in league history. He won the Eddie Shore Award as the AHL’s top defenseman after scoring a league-record 31 goals from the blue line and finishing with 55 points to lead all AHL defensemen.
He was just as dangerous on special teams. 13 of his goals came on the power play — the most among AHL defensemen — and he tied for the league lead with five game-winning goals from the back end. That season earned him First Team AHL All-Star honors and a selection to the All-Star Classic.
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Across his AHL career, MacDonald has played 357 games and recorded 260 points (103 goals, 157 assists) with Springfield, Albany, Binghamton, San Jose, and Colorado. A significant portion of that production came on the power play, where he’s totaled 134 points.
His production has shown up everywhere he’s gone. In 2017-18 with Binghamton, he led all AHL defensemen with 55 points and earned First Team All-Star honors. In Colorado during the shortened 2019-20 season, he again led all defensemen in goals with 16 and was named a Second Team All-Star.
He also brings NHL experience, appearing in 135 games with the Florida Panthers, Colorado Avalanche, and San Jose Sharks, recording 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists). In the AHL postseason, he’s appeared in 35 Calder Cup Playoff games with 11 points.
MacDonald’s path has been anything but linear. Undrafted out of Cornell, he began his pro career in the ECHL with the Elmira Jackals before carving out a long, productive career as one of the most consistent offensive defensemen in the league.
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Now, as he moves on to the Capitals organization, the Eagles are left to piece things back together. Not just after losing a high-end scoring defenseman — but after watching another key part of a once-promising core walk out the door in what has become a defining offseason of change.
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