Cale Makar continues to do Cale Makar things
Photo by Michael Martin/NHLI via Getty Images
It’s not in the way you’d expect it to be though. What can’t Cale Makar do?
He’s won the Conn Smythe, the Calder, a Stanley Cup, and a Hobey Baker. He’s broken Colorado Avalanche and NHL records. His talent is immense. His resume is already full. He has so much more ahead of him at only 24 years old.
But also, he apparently can’t draw penalties. What?
Yes, you heard that right. Makar couldn’t take the guts to give the Avs a penalty. While it sounds bad, it’s actually quite sweet and shows a ton about him and who he is as a person.
During Monday night’s tightly-contested affair between the Avs and New York Islanders, in the first period, there was a bizarre and unique incident that you don’t see often. Makar was going behind the net of Alexandar Georgiev, just doing his typical Makar things. Then, well ... let the video and tweet speak for themselves.
The refs called tripping...but Cale Makar told them he just slipped and the call was overturned pic.twitter.com/KkU0BJPOkS— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) December 20, 2022
Good guy Cale. While it probably was a good call simply because of where Mathew Barzal’s stick was on Makar’s body, he was right. The stick was nowhere near his feet for tripping, and instead up in the arm area and could’ve easily been called a hook rather than a trip.
Regardless, the referees listened to Makar’s plead to not enforce the penalty and rescinded the call. In fact, it is not the first time we have seen this. Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin had a similar instance against the Vegas Golden Knights last year.
In one of the most unbelievable events of the year, Alex Ovechkin has DECLINED a power play for the Caps. pic.twitter.com/qzntuh1AWw— Kyle Cannillo (@KyleCannillo) April 21, 2022
Two of the great eights were doing the right thing for the game. While the Avs were lucky this no-call didn’t come back to bite them, it sure does make for some unique content at the end of the day. You could almost see Cale’s innocence after the game, alongside his teammates, Jared Bednar and Barzal’s reactions.
Part One:
Great explanation from Cale. He did wave off the penalty and felt bad about it. He apologized to his teammates. Said he wouldn’t do it again. Pointed out the hockey gods. pic.twitter.com/EChNzkof1Y— Darren McKee (@DMacRadio) December 20, 2022
Part Two:
“Saved the ref from some media attention tonight, that’s for sure”- Cale Makar on “declining” a penalty in the first period. Said he felt it was the right thing to do in the moment, said he thought it was a pretty easy non-call. #Avs pic.twitter.com/Gjf9Y0JUBB— Jesse Montano (@jessemontano_) December 20, 2022
Evan Rodrigues on the Cale Call Off. nobody apparently is gonna give Cale any crap. “It’s Cale Makar…I’m certainly not gonna say anything to him” pic.twitter.com/u8jl8jW80T— Darren McKee (@DMacRadio) December 20, 2022
Will the boys give Cale a hard time? Will you? pic.twitter.com/0FEsBdMoz6— Darren McKee (@DMacRadio) December 20, 2022
Barzal Postgame Availability pic.twitter.com/N16Vd6Tzfc— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) December 20, 2022
Nonetheless, the good sportsmanship from Makar is a nice thing to see. At the end of the day, it is just sport. It is for entertainment, it is for fun for the players and fans out there at the end of the day. It was a nice pace of change from a good young man like him.
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