Cale Makar plays in a second-tier league yet scouts view him as a top-tier talent.
The Brooks Bandits defenceman is the top-ranked blueliner among North American skaters eligible for the draft and was a star in the Alberta Junior Hockey League.
“It’s his hands and how well he can pass and handle the puck at that speed that really catches your eye. He moves it with great vision and good lateral mobility, which is so important in today’s game. It’s not just straight-ahead speed, it’s being able to create time and space in small areas and he does that exceptionally well.” NHL Central Scouting’s John Williams said.
Here is some more on Makar.
Age on June 23: 18
Current Team: Brooks Bandits, AJHL
Position: Defence
Shoots: Right
Height: 5-foot-11
Weight: 180 pounds
From: Calgary
NHL Central Scouting Rank (North American): 9
Jeff Marek’s Take: “One of the best defencemen in the draft at transitioning pucks. Plays at a high tempo and can anchor a PP.”
He’s the MVP of the CJHL
Considering there are 132 teams that make up the Canadian Junior Hockey League, Maker’s accomplishment is noteworthy. He had 24 goals and 51 assists in 54 games plus 16 points in 13 playoff contests while leading his team to an AJHL championship.
He’s a proud AJHL alumnus
There have been close to 200 AJHL alumni go on to play in the NHL. Among them are notable names like Mark Messier, Lanny McDonald, Mike Vernon, six Sutters (Brent, Brian, Darryl, Duane, Rich and Ron), plus current NHLers Colton Parayko, Braden Holtby, Scott Hartnell, Scottie Upshall, Mason Raymond, Mark Letestu.
Most AJHL players who go on to the NHL aren’t drafted straight from the league like Makar will be though. For example, Dany Heatley spent the 1998-99 season with the Calgary Canucks, but he played at the University of Wisconsin when he was taken second overall by the Atlanta Thrashers in 2000.
Joe Colborne currently holds the record for being the highest-selected player taken directly out of the league. He went No. 16 overall to the Boston Bruins in 2008. Makar could break that record.
He is a UMass-Amherst recruit
Being a right-shot offensive-minded defenceman, Makar admires Erik Karlsson’s style. His coach at UMass will be former Ottawa Senators assistant Greg Carvel, which is something Makar’s looking forward to.
“I think coach Carvel is the perfect coach for me. He coached Erik Karlsson when he was at Ottawa,” Makar told the Daily Hampshire Gazette. “When I heard a lot of people comparing my game to his, I started watching a lot of clips of him. We have similar tendencies. Knowing that Carvel was there at the start of his career at Ottawa when he was 18 and helped him develop, was pretty cool.”
He captained Canada West at the World Junior A Challenge
Makar and his Canada West teammates were unable to defend the gold medal they won at the tournament in 2015, but Makar had a memorable performance in 2016. He finished with eight points in four games. The majority of those points came in Canada’s opener against Switzerland as he set a record by becoming the first defenceman in the tournament’s history to record five points in a single game.
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