Avalanche's Makar blossoming into a generational talent
Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar is earning accolades left, right and center.
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports - Avalanche's Makar blossoming into a generational talentPeople tend to not always appreciate greatness as it happens. Often times they tend to fully appreciate how special a moment, game, and period of time is after it has already passed. The beautiful game of hockey gives everyone the opportunity to appreciate how special a player, talent, and moment truly is. It is not often that a player whose talent is so special that it transcends the position that is being played.
This is why fans, media, and everyone else, should open their eyes to really appreciate the burgeoning of the career of a once in a generation player in Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar.
On Saturday, Makar notched his 300th career point in the Avalanche's 7-4 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. Makar became the second-fastest defenseman in NHL history to score 300 points, having done so in 280 games. He trailed Hockey Hall of Fame defenseman Bobby Orr by one game, who accomplished the feat in 279 games.
When your name is placed in the record books next to the greatest to ever play defenseman in the history of the NHL in Orr, that is going to garner a lot of attention. Most importantly, it will garner a lot of respect.
Orr is (arguably) the greatest defenseman to ever play in the NHL. Orr single handedly changed and revolutionized the defenseman position not only being a great shutdown defenseman, but also being able to score and generate offense as well.
Without him we may not have able to witness and full appreciate other all-time great defensemen such as Ray Bourque, Doug Harvey, Larry Robinson, Nicklas Lidstrom, and others. Without the career of Orr, not only we also would not have cherished and appreciated the greatness of the afore mentioned all-time great defensemen, but also the burgeoning of a career of an all-time great defenseman in Makar.
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Defensemen such as Makar do not come around often. In fact, they are extremely difficult to find. A defenseman who is as polished as him offensively and defensively are truly a rare breed. Just look around the NHL today, there are a select few defensemen who belong in the elite class of blue liners in the league.
Charlie McAvoy of the Boston Bruins, Quinn Hughes of the Vancouver Canucks, Miro Heiskanen of the Dallas Stars, Roman Josi of Nashville Predators, Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning, and Adam Fox of the New York Rangers are among the elite defensemen in the NHL. However Makar truly stands in a league of his own.
What makes Cale Makar so special is a combination of skill sets that he has. Makar's speed and his able to utilitze his patience and raw skating abilities makes him so dangerous on the ice especially when he is defending. Makar knows how to use his speed to get back and defend and when he jumps in on the rush and shooting the puck while playing a 200 foot game.
The other aspect of what makes Makar special is his ability to take contact from opposing forwards as he jumps into the play. Makar taking what is given to him and using it to his advantage helps put him in a league of his own as the best defenseman in the NHL right now.
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We are all witnesses of the burgeoning of a legendary career for a defenseman with Makar. Makar adding his name next to the greatest defenseman of all-time in Bobby Orr is just one reason why we should all begin to really appreciate what we are all witnessing on a nightly basis. A player that rare such as Makar does not come around often. He is only 25 years, as we have yet to have seen him hit his peak in terms of his overall game. Appreciate the greatness of Makar, it may be a very long time before we witness the likes of him again.
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