Who Else? Cale Makar Voted Best Defenseman by NHL Players

Colorado Avalanche fans all know Cale Makar is the best defenseman in the NHL. The majority of the Professional Hockey Writers Association felt he was the best defenseman last season.

And now, we know that most NHL players agree.

The NHLPA Player Poll was released on Wednesday morning, and not only was Makar voted the best defenseman in the NHL by his peers, but the vote wasn’t even that close.

626 players were polled, and nearly 400 of them chose Makar as the top defenseman in the world. He walked away with 63.9% of the votes. The next closest player to him was Victor Hedman, who picked up only 11.4% of the vote.

None of this should come as a surprise. Coming off not just a Norris Trophy win, but a dominant playoff performance that saw him take home the Conn Smythe Trophy, Makar was the correct pick. This season, he has 61 points in 55 games.

In other parts of the poll, Nathan MacKinnon got some love.

MacKinnon was voted the third best stickhandler in the game, and was picked as the fifth most complete player. He also received the third most votes when it came to picking the most impactful forward to have on your team in a must-win game, behind only Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid.

You can take a look at all the selections here.