BIOGRAPHY
Cale Makar was born October 30, 1998, in Calgary, Canada. He is a defenseman in the National Hockey League.
On April 14, 2019, the Avalanche signed Makar to a three-year, entry-level contract. He scored his first career NHL goal with his first shot in the league in his debut a day later, during Game 3 of the first round of the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs against the Calgary Flames. In so doing, he became the first defenceman to score a playoff goal in his NHL debut.
Makar made the Avalanche opening line up for the 2019–20 season and he scored his first career regular season goal in a 6–1 win over the Vegas Golden Knights. He was subsequently named a Third Star of the Week for the week of November 10, becoming the first Avalanche rookie to earn the honor. On November 12, 2019, in a 4–0 road win against the Winnipeg Jets, Makar became the second Avalanche defenceman to record 18 points in 18 games as a rookie. However, he suffered an upper body injury in a game against the Boston Bruins on December 7 and was listed as day-to-day. At the time of his injury, he was leading rookies in scoring with 28 points in 29 games. Makar returned to the Avalanche’s lineup on December 27, where he recorded an assist in the 6–4 loss to the Minnesota Wild. On January 18, 2020, Makar set a new Avalanche franchise record with his 11th goal of the season, besting John-Michael Liles record for most goals by a rookie defenceman. As a result of his play, he was named a Calder Memorial Trophy finalist alongside Quinn Hughes and Dominik Kubalík. During the second round of the NHL playoffs, Makar surpassed the record for most points in a postseason by a rookie defenceman, before it was beaten by Hughes the following night. Following the conclusion of the regular season, Makar was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as the rookie of the year. After the 2020–21 season Makar was named a finalist for the James Norris Memorial Trophy and finished second in the voting for the trophy.
On July 24, 2021, Makar signed a six-year $54 million extension with the Avalanche. On October 28, Makar scored two points (one goal and one assist) in a 4–3 win against the St. Louis Blues, in doing so, he scored his 100th point in just 108 games, which tied him with Sergei Zubov as the sixth-fastest defenceman to accomplish this feat. On March 25, Makar scored his 24th goal of the 2021–22 season in a 6–3 win against the Philadelphia Flyers, breaking the Avalanche's single-season record for goals scored by a defenceman. He finished the season with 28 goals, the most by a defenceman in the NHL since Brent Burns in the 2016–17 season, and 58 assists. 19 of his 28 goals were at even strength. Makar was named a James Norris Memorial Trophy finalist for the second consecutive season. He won the Norris Trophy, the first Avalanche defenceman to do so, and finished eighth in voting for the Hart Memorial Trophy, awarded by the Professional Hockey Writers' Association to the league's most valuable player.
The Avalanche finished first in the Western Conference, and second in the league overall, advancing into the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs to meet the Nashville Predators in the first round. Makar scored 10 points in a four-game sweep of the Predators, setting a record for points by a defenceman in the first four games of a postseason. Teammate Nathan MacKinnon remarked, "he might be the best player in the league right now." He would amass a further 19 points in the next three rounds, as the Avalanche ousted the Blues and the Edmonton Oilers before defeating the two-time and defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning in the Cup Finals. Makar finished the playoffs with a team-leading 29 points, the fourth-most for a defenceman in a single postseason in league history. He was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the postseason, and became only the third defenceman to win the Norris and Conn Smythe Trophies in the same season, after Bobby Orr (1970 and 1972) and Niklas Lidström (2002).
Makar recorded 20 points in the first 17 games of the 2022–23 season, his 20th being a power play goal scored in a November 21, 2022, game against the Dallas Stars. This was his 200th career point in 195 games, the fastest pace of any NHL defenceman to that milestone. Previous record holder Sergei Zubov reached the mark in 207 games. He attracted notice when, during a December 19 game against the New York Islanders, he convinced the referee to rescind a tripping penalty that had been incorrectly assessed against Islanders forward Matthew Barzal, with Makar clarifying that he had fallen on his own rather than being tripped. Barzal remarked that it was "obviously, good sportsmanship on his part. I don't know if I would have done the same, to be honest with you.
Makar was named the cover athlete for EA Sports NHL 24.
Colorado Avalanche
