Cale Makar Is The Greatest Defensemen The NHL Has Ever Seen
There I said it. No, it’s not a “hot take”. It’s just a fact. Cale Makar is the GOAT in terms of defensemen in the NHL. Nobody is just willing to say it yet because Makar is only in his third season. Makar will go down in the history books as the best defenseman we have ever seen. No, it’s not too early to say it.
We have seen a lot of defensemen rack up points. A lot of them pick them up simply because they’re the quarterback of the powerplay. Not Makar. He is his own definition of dirty. Nobody skates like him. Nobody has ever looked more versatile. Makar is the Connor McDavid of defensemen. The only difference is, Makar is basically a unicorn. There has never been anything like him.
Want to take a shot at who leads the NHL in goals above expected? A defenseman… A stat that Makar shouldn’t sniff the leader board in given where he plays on the ice.
Makar has 16 goals in 29 games during the 2021-2022 season. Playing in Colorado obviously helps his point total as Makar has another 18 assists on the season. Playing with Nathan MacKinnon, Gabriel Landeskog, and Mikko Rantanen is going to increase your point production. I say, blame Jersey, Philadelphia, and Dallas for passing on him. Additionally, it’s painfully obvious that Makar would replicate his alien skill set with any team.
Sorry, not sorry, nobody is doing this. Nobody. Again, there are great goal scorers across the league. There isn’t another thing that exists like Makar. Nothing. You can’t replicate him. Not even in a factory. I refuse to believe that the Avalanche defensemen is human.
Makar has always been good since he entered the league. He was a narrow Calder winner over Quinn Hughes. Makar always looked different but now he’s breaking the ceiling we thought existed for any player. The former 4th overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft currently has a shooting percentage of 19.3. For comparison sake, McDavid has never cracked 18% in a season. On a team with all that talent, Makar is the one who transcends Colorado from a good to great team.
Trust your eyes. I don’t care what name you throw out there. Nobody is better than this guy playing as a defensemen. Nobody. Nobody. Nobody. It’s not a hot take. We’re watching something that never used to exist.
It’s like watching the guy create the mouse pad for a computer. It’s like watching the guy who invented air pods. This is history. Don’t be afraid to say it. Yes, Cale Makar is 23 but he’s already the best defensemen the NHL has ever seen. The scary part is, he’s probably not done getting better.
