Cale Makar Was Even Better Than We Thought In The Playoffs

A good Twitter follow for serious hockey people is that of Dimitri Filipovic. He really breaks down video well of players/trends/whatever. He’s got a great tweet today on just how good Cale Makar was on breakouts in the playoffs. This will be a very satisfying two-plus minutes for Avalanche fans:

Cale Makar attempted 178 5v5 zone exits this postseason and completed 70.2% of them with possession. Here's a mix of some of my favourite ones pic.twitter.com/ytRtCm87yC

— Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) July 28, 2022

70.2 percent of breakouts, with possession, at even strength in the playoffs? Yeah, not bad. Cale Makar winning the Conn Smythe Trophy was richly deserved. When you don’t have to worry about getting the puck out of your own zone – man, does the game get a lot easier. Let’s not forget Makar’s partner too, who helped make numbers like that happen – Devon Toews. After next season, by the way, Toews can sign a contract extension with the Avalanche, and that will be an absolute must for Chris MacFarland to accomplish.

We all in Denver and Avalanche fans everywhere were really fortunate to get Makar at No. 4 in the NHL draft in 2017. Do I daresay that his $9 million cap hit is starting to seem like a real bargain? There’s a wide range of sports out there, and right now hockey is the darling of them all in Denver right now. No wonder his rookie card is blowing up right now. By the way, here’s a good story on Makar, talking a little bit about Bobby Orr, which includes a picture of him as a kid in a Bruins jersey.

Oh, and Makar is 23 years old. He’s a Stanley Cup champion, the Norris Trophy winner and the Conn Smythe Trophy winner. I mean, it’s just unbelievable. What he accomplished this season is one for the history books.

No wonder Avalanche fans feel like this right now: