His first goal, on his first shift, in his first ever NHL game, with his parents in the stands...the Pepsi Center exploded with cheers. He started his career with a bang and I can't imagine that it will anything but hall of fame-worthy.
As a devils fan, I can say that nico may not have the raw talent of makar, but he still is a great player with plenty of potential. I see him becoming more of a Backstrom of Zajac style of player
@@devilsfan2462 yeah Nico is playing solid just different play styles and the obvious skill gap but it’s not even fair to compare anyone else to makar except probably Bobby Orr 🤷♂️
Makar simply raised the level of this Avalanche team from the moment he stepped on the ice for his first game(in the playoffs) and just helped in a huge way getting this team back to the 3rd round in 20 years! #AllHailCale #GoAvsGo #FindAWay
As an old-school guy from the 70's and 80's who's literally talked Hockey in person with Bobby Orr-- you'll often hear guys from my generation not give credit to any of the younger players. But this kid is for real... A generational player. His vision of the moving chess pieces, his ability to keep his head up while stick handling, and his Hockey IQ. Just a special special player.
@@rodhenson7657 Perhaps you know, but the same criticism was given to Bobby Orr... especially in regards to him always being deep in the offensive zone... His response was classic, he said "You know, when you have the puck that's a pretty good defense" LOL But Makar is more like Bobby Orr and Paul Coffey crashing the net and lots of time in the offensive zone. Whereas, Lidstrom and Bourque were more traditional stay-at-the-point or always hang back type of positional players. All were fantastic just different styles... Coffey was a great skater and he had a great passer in Gretzky so he'd crash the net a lot... But hey, I'd take any of the guys I just mentioned! Cheers mate
Avs fan here so obviously I agree. However, both Miro and Elias are right up there so really, 3,4,5 may be one of the best trio at those spots in Draft history. All 3 have a real chance at being the top player from that class.
@@jejsemin33 Petey is starting to get a lot better. Not quite makars level but he has bridged the gap quite a bit this season. He has an all around game now. Who knows he might be putting up 100+ points yearly if he was on colorado. We saw how that benefitted kadri.
Cale is a really talented guy. Colorado have the craziest line-up now, looking better than what they have in many years. Surely another Stanley Cup is on the way within the near future... Great hockey.
@@crystalskylight9327 Hahaha! Great prediction. The near future is now and it came fast, haha. Makar is like beyond human. The team's passing and skill seems another level compared to all others. Extremely fun to watch. Just have to finish now. Too bad about Kadri! Leading assist guy.
Reports have recently come out that in that draft Flyers scouts were telling Ron Hextal to pick Makar 2nd overall but Hextal chose Patrick instead against scout recommendations.
That's pretty on brand for the Flyers. Makar is better off because they would have just churned and burned him without giving him the extra time in NCAA to develop. And the org doesn't seem to value puck moving defenseman, they never gave Ghost a fair shot either.
It’s kind of a cherry picked stat that he was chosen so late in the WHL draft. It was known he was going the NCAA route, so it would have been a waste of a high pick. Late picks in major juniors happen all the time for players committed to the NCAA route.
Future legend in Makar, and as a life long Flyer's fan, it is a very difficult pill to swallow (glad I watched the video, I had not realized he played in a lower junior division league and that is why it was difficult for scouts to gauge exactly how good he was! Keep this video up, you are likely going to get A LOT of views over the years!
Well, i know its a year late but comparing him to Karlsson is a slap in the face to Makar at this point, kids a legend in the making especially with his first cup under his belt
to me, it looks like the AVs made a lot of good choices for Makar's development. Normally, teams are quick to put the player on the roster after the draft
Avs wanted him after his freshman year though. I'm sure it would've worked out fine. But it was Makar,& his parents-who decided he needed another season of college hockey. A Hoby Baker,& trip to the National title game certainly didn't hurt.
Colorado also had the luxury of a much more complete roster than the Devils, Flyers and Stars which allowed them to take a risk and draft Makar. The potential was there but due the the leagues he played in as this video mentions, I think that and his size scared some teams away. Good on Colorado to take the risk, paid off big time! This video really made me think of why drafting is so hard and it makes me think of the Devils drafting Luke Hughes. It's very hard for things to align like they did in order for a team like the Avs to be able to take a risk on Makar and not be hurt too badly if he didn't pan out. Same with the Devils, very hard to end up the place to draft your beat players younger brother whom happens to be the exact position you need most and who is considered to have one of if not the highest ceiling of any 1st rounder in 2021 due to being an underage draft pick and almost an entire year younger than the 1st overall. Great video though! Scouting/drafting is extremely fascinating
Sakic wanted Heiskanen though, it is documented. Makar was a pretty good consolation prize, especially considering the Avs were frustrated their pick after tanking was all the way to the 4 spot.
As an Avs fan I'll never forget watching the draft (I had to follow it on my phone) and I wanted Makar badly but didn't think he'd be there when the Avs picked. We all knew Patrick and Hischier were going 1/2, but I really thought the Stars would take Makar. I figured we were going to go with Cal Foote or even Brannstrom. When the Stars took Heiskanen I remember thinking "if we don't take Makar I'm going to be furious" and then we did. When he got his first shot to play with the Avs, in a playoff game, and looked so comfortable, I knew we had a really good player. Fast forward to now and he's absolutely one of our best guys and clearly the best defenseman on the team and among the best, if not the best in the league. Great video! Brought back some good memories.
I was hoping he'd fall down to the Sabres cause that's where he was projected. Obviously the avs were the only component team that were in the top 4 that year.
@@scarycrazymann well, I don't think you can say the stars did a bad pick with Heiskanen. Actually, Sakic was disappointed because he wanted Heiskanen, but had to "settle" for Makar.
@@wallybipster probably doesn't regret that now lol. I think heiskanen still has yet to explode, defenceman usually take time to have a breakout season. Makar is the exception, he may even be even better.
@@scarycrazymann absolutely. Both these guys started off well, but Makar was younger. I've never seen a D-man as fresh as Makar look so good from day 1. But with the way D-men tend to take time to develop, who knows what we'll be saying in a couple years. It's funny how the OC above mentioned Brannstrom, as I live closer to Ottawa these days, and he only started looking like a real solid up-and-coming player for the Sens this year, but that's more the norm. Also, the Sens...
@@wallybipster Byram has been pretty impressive considering he’s the same age Makar was. Makar did have a couple of rookie mistakes in his first playoffs that I haven’t seen from Byram. For example when Makar scored on his own goal against Dallas. While I think Makar is more talented Byram has been even more poised than makar was at age 20. They’re gonna be a solid defensive pair for a long time.
Hey Robbie I just saw this one I don’t know how I missed it great video buddy as usual thank you for putting these. I’m all balls and I really appreciate watching your channel
Video looked great Rob. I am a pretty new subscriber to your channel. I like your enthusiasm and the way you come across. Some of the other guys have seemed to slip into a monotone limbo lately. Keep up the great work brother 👍🏻👍🏻
All 3 of 3-5 are arguably the best player. All of those teams made the right choice in who fits cuz dallas needed a good 2 way dman with klingberg already there avs needed a offensive dman cuz they had good defensive d and Vancouver for the last of the three and needed a good forward to replace the sedins. All around good for each team no matter who is the “best” player cuz they all are great and good fits.
@@arthursundberg9012 yeah Makar is clearly better now, Pettey showed no signs of slowing down, and even In the 2020 playoffs he was elite, and he’s just been declining since, it really couldn’t have been predicted, unless he reverts back to his previous potential, Makar will stay better
Cale was a pleasure to watch here in Brooks and yes he was that good then, there were NHL potential players on many teams during his time here. Brooks has been a training ground for many talented players in part due to the coaching,training and scouting staff we have. Just watch for more players to come out of here… GO BANDITS GO and GO AVS GO.
Haven't watched the video yet, but all I can say is how thankful I am that Cale Makar honored his UMass commitment years ago. Changed the identity of our program.
I heard them talking this exact topic on NHL radio today. The best thing that happened to Colorado was dropping in the draft due to the lottery because if they had drafted #1, taking a Tier 2 player first overall would be a very hard sell to anyone, regardless of his talent. It's possible Makar was #1 on their list anyway. I read the Canucks had Makar #1 on their list as well in 2017.
If Nolan can come back 100% next season, he’s going to have success. Plenty of good wing options for that 3rd line. And we could really use him netfront PP1.
@@brantcaswell4637 Miro is trash compared to makar or petey who are both calder trophy winners. Dont get me wrong he is good but compared to the offensive talents of makar and petey then he is just trash
@@ChimpTV Like the Oilers of 1980 the only difference is that they played during the Islanders dynasty, I think the Avs will win sooner than the Oilers did
@iBlurrr ' yeah because his points we’re getting inflated, with his stats relative to teammates, he was negatively affecting his team, he was below replacement level in even strength offence
gonna have to revisit this video when Hischier pulls a Mackinnon and starts to pop off after a few average years. Guy is really starting to find his stride this year and I expect a huge breakout season in 2022/2023 for him. He is by no means better than Makar, but people are starting to realize how underrated Nico is
wild watching this vid right before colorado plays in the stanley cup final. makar has gone from people saying he’s going to be the next karlsson, which ain’t shabby at all, to wayne gretzky saying he’s the closest thing he’s seen to bobby orr. it sounds weird to compare a forward and a d-man, but makar is literally the mcdavid of defenders right now, so fun to watch cale take over a game offensively while also being one of the best the other way of the ice as well
@@TheAlphapuck5280 So you think Makar is on the ice just with his d partner? Ok then. You should watch some more hockey, son. You'll learn a thing or two.
Makar and the likes remind me of a past when defenseman (think Orr, Coffey, McInnis, Bourque) were allowed to shine, then came years of defensive shut down hockey which was kind of boring. I hope defenseman like Makar and Hughes are the new norm as they make hockey so much more exciting and dynamic. Great video.
Not even close to orr ... a modern day orr would score like McDavid but at the same time he'd be the best player in the league defensively ... and he'd also throw his body around ... he would fight to ....
@@RHaines76Gaming he was faster then everybody that's why he could play offensively and still be good in his own end also there were alot more bad skaters back then ... the difference between ability was larger from top to bottom he was physical he blocked shots he played amazingly in his own end he turned a 20 goal mid 20s Phil Esposito into a 76 goal scorer a record that was held till gretzky broke it .... orr also played in Era where u had goalies like Tony Esposito having 1.69 gaas and 15 shoutout seasons .... again how old are u were u a adult when u show orr play if not then maybe u should refresh your memory and watch some full games
I havent understood why being offensive in hockey is better than being a 2-way player in someones mind. Like Heiskanen and Makar doesnt have much difference who u play Heiskanen would get some less points but be better on your own side on the ice. Thats has allways been like that european players arent that much offensive as americans and canadians in hockey. Just my opinion sorry for bad english.
Except that Makar is really good defensively and he can play physical and hit and will get better at that once he puts on weight. I honestly don't understand where this thought process started that he is all offense no defense
There are alot of European hockey players with no defensive skills that's why u see european guys leave from the ahl and end up being top 6 forwards in the khl .... Russians are European and they are notoriously more on the offensive side then the defensive side maybe in scanadanavia its more defensive not as physical but the players are more defensive from there but that's not Europe that's what 4 or 3 countries
When I went back and watched the draft from the years Makar & Bowen Byram were picked, it actually sounded like the scouts were higher on Byram than Makar. Because of injuries we still haven't seen what Byram can do.
Dude it’s okay, I’m 5’6 and 46 now. You can still be the best 5’5 or whatever on the ice and in life. Just avoid going to stand up concerts because like me, you won’t see shit lol
I have a close friend who played in the AJHL. He confirmed that Makar was absolutely clowning everybody he played against. I’m pretty sure him playing in the AJHL was what scared teams away from picking him in the top three. Even though, in my opinion, he’s far better than Hischier and Patrick.
I think patrick and hieschier will be the best players on this draft after 3 more years, cause hieschier can be on of the best 2 way center on the NHL and Noalen can fanally show his talent after the injuri
Love the format.. Makar is an unreal player. Watching him on the ice with MacKinnon is crazy. Those two have chemistry of scoring goals. Makar needs to win the Calder.
Vasilevsky was drafted by TB at #19. Whats crazy is Slater Koekkoek was picked by TB at #10. I like to look at draft classes to see who got picked before the stars.
As a dallas fan I haven't decided if we made a mistake, Miro was a lock and not sure if he would have excelled in Dallas system as well. If we had to do it again think I'd still take Miro.
Makar and Heiskanen is a toss up...I be happy with either guy...but obviously Philly and Jersey made a mistake passing on Makar and Heiskanen and Pettersson as well.
I live 20 minutes south of UMass Amherst campus, and I consider myself a huge hockey fan. Somehow I never heard of him until he made his nhl debut and he became a Western Mass legend because "the umass kid scored an nhl goal". I wish I could have watching him at UMass
Joe Sakic has the uncanny ability to spot talented players from an early age. His first season and a rookie wins the Norris trophy and also the Hart as well. He so far advanced beyond his age. Can't wait to the start of the season.
Makar is unbelievable but Miro Heiskanen is the best player from this draft class. He's amazing on the defensive side of the game and his offensive stats are great, too. We gotta remember that the Stars aren't a high scoring team and Miro is putting in those kind of numbers as a D. Incredible player.
Awesome video Rob! Loved the format and the direction you are going. Best player from 2017 draft will be always and currently is Heiskanen. He is unreal. Also Cale Makar and Pettersen play on better offensive teams. The support and options are there in COL and VAN. Miro makes his own in DAL. (Also to note Hischer plays on one of the worst rosters and owes his work only to himself)
Players get overlooked all the time. Doug Gilmour (Hockey Hall of Fame 2011) wasn't selected until the 7th round, 134th overall. It wasn't because he was an unknown commodity, in his draft year, he finished with 70 goals and 107 assists for 177 points in 68 games and was voted MVP in the OHL. Always thought of as too small since his minor hockey days. Can't wait for Cale to represent Canada with the big boys.🍁
When are people gonna actually start viewing talent in the ajhl and bchl as actual stars i mean dion Phaneuf came from the ajhl as well as parayko and thats just a couple not even close to all the players that have been selected from that league
@@apollo4772 they’re pretty even in terms of skill level and both don’t get much attention lol and besides that has nothing to do with my original comment. AJHL is much lesser competition than CHL, NCAA, USHL, KHL, VHL, MHL, Liiga, and pretty much any pro league so it’s pretty obvious why they don’t get much attention.
Sakic never wanted heiskanen lol. He is never even said anything like that. Cale makar is calder trophy winning defenseman meanwhile heiskanen isnt lol
I've always wondered : would the Avs had picked hium if they got the first overall? Like, was he their target from the start? He might have been because he was ranked 9th in North America I believe, so being draft 4th, before many others considered better at the time, he had to have been the priority for Colorado, right?
Calling this dude "Erik Karlsson" is an insult to Makar. Most importantly.....he is his own person. Secondly, calling him Erik Karlsson would imply that this kid is gonna get paid and fall off a cliff and never meet expectations. Hopefully that will never happen to him. I can not begin to say how frustrating it is as a Sharks fan to remember what Erik Karlsson was and had never been since coming to San Jose.
This joung gentleman is a phenomenal hockey player. How he didn't go first in the draft, he was definitely worthy of it and I truly believe he is a big reason that the Avalanche won the Stanley Cup . He is still a very young player but unlike Karlsson he has the ability to go from his own end of the ice and skate the 200 feet and I think this is where he differs from Eric Karlsson, Makarov scores and I believe that he will only continue to get better.
I see Pettersson being the best overall in that draft. Only weaknes he has is a small gas tank. Makar is great but makes misstakes now and then. Hieskanen is already a flawless player. A norris candidate - this season. Imagine being the scouting org that put Makar at 20! But in general I think the draft is a bit over hyped. Just look what Kiviranta just did, a undrafted player!
Flawless my ass lol. Did you watch his series against the avs. He played great sure but if you actually watched both Miro and Cale made turnovers that resulted in goals.
Yeah, that was my only critique as well. That first game, (first shift I think), first goal in the playoffs was quite the introduction. I knew that first year he was going to be good, but still amazed at just how good.
@@wallybipster Agreed. I was at that game, by the way, and the explosion after Makar's goal is the loudest I have ever heard 'Pepsi Center' (now Ball Arena).
Great video. I live in Brooks and am I huge Bandits fan. I get the argument that the jr a leagues are trash, but as someone who watches both jr a, and major jr I can honestly say they aren't that far apart. Lots of jr a players could easily hold down roster spots in the chl. Just like many chl players probably should be in jr a. I know back when makar played a handful of games as an 15 year old affiliate in brooks, that he was going to be a star.
I remember my dad watching the Usa Vs Canada game, didnt even know it was on. My dad straight up said "The Avs are so going to pick this kid up. There's no doubt in my mind." He said the same thing about Payton Manning once there was talk of trading him. I don't know how he keeps calling this stuff, but im down with it.
I was in my early 40’s when Bourque was looking to go to a cup contender. I told my mother (where I get my hockey genes from) that I thought Pierre Lacroix would get Ray, even when all the media predicted he would go to Detroit. The following season when there were rumblings that Rob Blake was leaving the Kings, I told her “Pierre is going to go get him”. Sure enough and the rest is history!! SCC 2001 Mission 16W completed!! Your dad is my kind of guy!!!
