nothing is wrong with Cale Douglas Makar. He’s still that player. He just has to be another version of the guy who won the Conn Smythe, Norris Trophy and Stanley Cup in just a few weeks last season.
These days, the Colorado avalanche more like an infirmary than a juggler. A year ago, they topped the Central Division rankings with the best record at the Western Conference through 38 games. This year, they are two points behind the wildcard final place (even though they have games in hand). That’s not to say the Avs can’t repeat as Cup champions. But repetition is meant to keep everyone healthy, and there’s no real timetable for when that might happen.
That means countermeasures must be taken. Giving Makar extra minutes is one of them. Almost two more minutes per game than last season. As a result, he leads the league in minutes played along with taking on additional responsibilities that others may not realize.
Makar is always present. Just not in the way you might expect or fans might want to see. It may not come in the form of bombastic displays, long shots, end-to-end goals, hesitant moves, toe pulls, and other things he does to manipulate. opponent at a glance.
Everything that makes Makar an imminent threat is still there. It’s just that he has to become more and sometimes he has to become something less.
In other words, he had to learn to pick points and save his energy — and even Makar admits, he didn’t quite tune in the way he wanted.
“I don’t know if it’s the reality of not being able to play the style I want,” Makar said. “Even in these minutes, great players find a way to be able to manage that. …I’m not sure if it’s a change of style and still want to do the exact same style. yours or not. It’s substandard.”
Those who know Makar know that he is a self-critical person. His current dilemma stems from the fact that he can find the most efficient way to be in top form while helping Avalanche win. That required juggling what it means to play more than 27 minutes a game, leading his team in 5v5 playtime, finishing second in both short minutes and in the powerhouse minutes. while beating Colorado by man advantage.
He averaged 27:23 and played 5v5 so much that he led the team for a total of more than 20 minutes (mostly because of Makar’s defensive partner, Devon Toewsmissing two games). Mikko Rantanenwho has played in every game and is third on Avalanche for ice time, 60 minutes behind Makar.
Makar’s minutes have steadily increased since he joined the tournament. So take your responsibility. He has lived up to expectations as a top pairing defender who can facilitate power play. Now, he’s also a boxer killer, who needed just 38 games to get past his brief minutes of play last season (107:28 in 77 games).
What he has done over the first three games of January illustrates what it means to be Makar at the moment. He averaged 30:26 in ice time while scoring 11 minutes on a successful penalty plus another 16 on power play. All while trying to get the Avs through a five-game losing streak that almost turned into six skaters until they recovered from Saturday’s two-goal loss to win overtime 3-2 first. Edmonton Petroleum.
In the game against Edmonton, Makar scored his first goal for Colorado, then took possession of the ball in the Colorado area, dashing through the neutral zone and shoot out a wrist for the winner of the game. He finished with 33:09 in ice time while playing 5:58 in the penalty kick and 6:17 in the power play.
“I think there are always different things to consider,” says Makar of his heavier workload. “But now, the way the season goes with the injuries and the way we have a December where we play playoff hockey every day without a break and different days to practice… I don’t think about it. that. But when I’m tired out on the field, I think about the different areas where I can’t give my best and still be able to make the play.”
His self-critical nature means that Makar is always trying to find answers to whatever challenges he is facing. So when it comes to learning how (and when) to use energy, he’s still trying to find the perfect balance. But he has a blueprint to follow, thanks to Toews.
Makar said he relied on Toews when picking and picking the right moments in the game to be more aggressive while still being able to record the heavy minutes. Toews said his and Makar’s goal is to defend solidly and well, but look to contribute more than they do in defence.
Toews said: “I think the way we can keep our distance and overcome opponents early will help us be more successful later on. “If he keeps up with a guy, I can catch the ball. It saves us from having to play in our zone and allows us to play more through the neutral zone and beyond at an inward pace. zone O and a little bit of a freestyle with the way we defend.”
Toews said what helped him become more selective were the nuances of Avalanche’s defensive structure. He said Avs’ system allows defenders to be creative and read the situation with the understanding that every blueliner can have a different perspective on the reading they must take.
Thus, there is a freedom given to the defenders of Avs. Toews says they can use that freedom to be selective and know when to save energy versus when to be more aggressive.
Not all games are the same. Toews said there are some games he and Makar will play for more than 28 or 29 minutes and feel good. But there are also matches where they can play 23 or 24 minutes and feel like they need four days off.
“I think you look at our squad and what we’ve had to deal with injuries, we have freedom. [jump into the rush] but we didn’t feel the need or time for us to rush,” Toews said. an opportunity because we don’t have nightly offensive weapons and we pride ourselves on being able to block the top lane of other teams.”
How many injuries have shaped the Avalanche season? Short answer: A lot. They don’t have a hub Nathan MacKinnon and Evan Rodrigues for 11 games. Defender player Bowen Byram only played 10 games, winger Valeri Nichushkin has been limited to 15 and the guardian Josh Manson played 21. Captain and left winger Gabriel Landeskog did not play at all after knee surgery in October, striker Darren Helm made his season debut on 2 January and is a goalkeeper. Pavel Francouz was transferred to the wounded reserve at the end of December.
It resulted in 38 individuals playing at least one game for Avalanche through 38 competitions. That’s one less than what they have in an 82-game season in 2021-22.
Here’s why Toews gave Makar another valuable piece of advice: You can take a break from hockey for a few days.
“A lot of guys think – especially young guys – that they have to skate and on non-compulsory days they feel they have to go because they’re young guys,” Toews said. “One thing our leadership has preached is that if you don’t feel the need to go out, don’t go out. I think that’s the thing. [Makar] started to take control when he was on the ice after playing so many minutes and going to the gym with what he felt could help him recover and feel better.”
In a way, Makar has learned not to bring work home. His father, Gary, said Cale doesn’t even have copies of his personal awards at his home in Denver. Many of his sons’ awards – Calder, Hobey Baker and Norris – are at the Makar family home in Calgary.
Makar says leaving hockey means calling family and friends, playing video games or watching movies or TV shows.
“He will phone [his mom] and said you should check out this thing I bought at Costco!” Gary said of his son’s non-hockey activities, “We laughed because it was perfect. … The most interesting thing is that he talked to [his mother] Laura for half an hour about buying luggage. He was like, ‘Then there’s this!’ and we were like, ‘OK, Cale.'”
However, there are times when those conversations move from luggage to hockey.
Gary said he could have told his son he had a great game only for Cale to tell his father he was “not that great.” Gary says much of his son’s need for self-assessment comes from knowing he’s not yet in the position he wants to be as a player.
But not without progress. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said he trusted Makar to play those tough minutes because he got the job done. He said Makar has found a way to manage being aggressive versus conservative while remaining an offensive threat.
“You watch a guy play, if his game drops when he hits a certain number of minutes or starts to get tired or has problems, then I think you have to give him some support,” says Bednar. little”. “For him and for us, sometimes we used him too much unnecessarily with some of the injuries we had in the back, but he handled it well.”
However, having a player like Makar comes with a philosophical discussion. Specifically, how does Bednar or any coach maximize what Makar brings to the team without letting him down?
Bednar said the coaching staff, team medical staff and Makar talked about how Makar was feeling. Bednar said Makar is “a pretty honest player” and will let the team know if he needs a break.
Makar’s role and status in the team is very important. That’s why Bednar says he wants Makar (or any player) to be honest with him about how they feel. He says having that information allows the coaching staff to figure out the next steps.
“There’s a maturity in Cale that you know he’ll always tell you the truth,” Bednar said. “He’ll be honest about his situation. Even if he wants to help more and he feels he can’t, you want to know and you have to pay attention to that.”
