Cale Makar is a year removed from his career-defining trifecta of hardware but don’t think for a second that means the hockey world finds him to be old news.
The Colorado Avalanche star defenseman was announced as the cover athlete for EA Sports’ NHL 24 video game Monday. Trevor Zegras of the Ducks was the NHL 23 cover star.
The full reveal of the NHL 24 edition is scheduled for Wednesday.
Makar is coming off his third consecutive season as a Norris Trophy finalist. He finished third in voting for the 2022-23 season and might have won the prize if he had made it through the regular season fully healthy. In 60 games, he amassed 66 points (17 goals, 49 assists) in career-high ice time, averaging 26:23 per game.
Makar won the Norris and Conn Smythe trophies in 2021-22 while leading the Avs to their third Stanley Cup championship. Colorado’s title defense ended with a first-round exit last season while the Vegas Golden Knights stormed through the West and eventually hoisted the Cup.
Makar, 24, is entering his fifth full NHL season. He joins an impressive collection of players chosen to represent the league as cover stars in the recent years, including Auston Matthews, Alexander Ovechkin, Connor McDavid, P.K. Subban, Jonathan Toews and Patrice Bergeron.
Former Avalanche forwards Joe Sakic (2004) and Peter Forsberg (1998) have also been featured on the cover.
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