Cale Makar Named First Star Of The Week By NHL

As expected, Cale Makar has been named one of the stars of the week by the NHL.

First star, actually.

Here’s what the release from NHL had to say about Makar…

Makar, who collected multiple points in all three of his appearances, led the NHL with seven assists and eight points (1-7—8) to power the Avalanche (11-5-0, 22 points) to a perfect week. He scored an insurance goal early in the third period and added a helper in a 5-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken Nov. 13. Makar then recorded his 13th career three-assist and 23rd career three-point performance in an 8-2 win against the Anaheim Ducks Nov. 15. He capped the week with three more helpers in a 6-3 triumph versus the Dallas Stars Nov. 18 to become the fastest defenseman in NHL history to reach the 200-assist milestone (254 GP). The 25-year-old Makar, who won the Calder Memorial Trophy during his rookie campaign (2019-20) and since has added the James Norris Memorial Trophy, Conn Smythe Trophy and Stanley Cup (2021-22) to his résumé, ranks among the top defensemen in assists (2nd; 20), points (2nd; 24), plus/minus (t-2nd; +13) and goals (t-8th; 4) through 16 total contests this season. He also has compiled 1-12—13 during an active six-game assist/point streak dating to Nov. 7.

Second star of the week went to William Nylander of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins was named third star.

With this hot run, Makar has taken over the scoring lead on the Colorado Avalanche, and is inching closer to catching Quinn Hughes as the top scoring defenseman in the league.

Makar and the Avalanche are in Nashville to take on the Predators tonight. That game starts at 6 PM MST.