Cale Makar continues to rack up the accolades as one of the greatest defensemen ever to play the game. He won the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the league’s best defender for the second time in his career. It’s the first time he’s won it since 2022.

Makar has finished top three in Norris voting every year aside from his rookie year, where he won the Calder Trophy. He received the award with his family while on a golf outing.

The Colorado Avalanche defensemen was in the running for the trophy alongside Zach Werenski from the Columbus Blue Jackets and Quinn Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. Makar received 176 first-place votes. He also got 13 second-place votes and two third-place votes.

The Avs’ No. 8 finished with 92 points in the regular season. The split between those 92 points was 30 goals and 62 assists. Makar was the first defender since Mike Green in 2008-09 for the Washington Capitals to score 30 goals in a single season.

Makar was also brilliant on special teams all season long. He set career highs in shorthanded goals with two. He also scored 12 power-play goals, which made up for 246 total shots on net.

Once again, Makar was a constant presence and threat on the ice. The 26-year-old Canadian averaged 25:43 per game and will continue to push the boundaries of what he can do.

He’s the first Avalanche player to bring home any hardware from the season after Gabriel Landeskog missed out on the Masterton. While it’s only the second time he’s ever won the Norris, Cale Makar is bound for more trophies in an already full cabinet.