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Avalanche’s Cale Makar gets ‘primetime LeBron James’ comparison before Game 1 injury absence
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- Avalanche’s Cale Makar gets ‘primetime LeBron James’ comparison before Game 1 injury absence
Avalanche’s Cale Makar gets ‘primetime LeBron James’ comparison before Game 1 injury absence appeared first on ClutchPoints . Add ClutchPoints as a Preferred Source by clicking here .
The Colorado Avalanche , who advanced to the Western Conference Final, will not have star defenseman Cale Makar in the lineup for Game 1 against the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday evening.
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Makar, who was injured during their second-round win over the Minnesota Wild , did not practice on Tuesday, but did skate on Monday and Wednesday and is currently considered day-to-day by the club.
Making a guest appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” was former Avalanche defenseman and current NHL Insider Erik Johnson , who dropped a major comparison of what being without Makar is like.
“Having Makar out – the best description I can give, if you’re not a natural hockey fan watching this show right now, it would be like a primetime LeBron James not being in the lineup,” Johnson said via The Pat McAfee Show on X.
“That’s how big Cale Makar is for the Avs and for the NHL. He’s just as good on the offensive side as he is defensively. He’s a guy who’s out there when you need a goal, and when you’re defending the other team, trying to put one in your net. He’s just that good at both ends of the rink.”
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However, Johnson says that while the injury to Makar could be worse than the Avalanche initially anticipated, he expects him to return before long.
“For me, and I’m just speculating, I played with these guys, and I’m really good friends with them. I’m not going to bug them during the playoffs or fish for any injury gossip or anything like that,” Johnson said. “But to me, it feels like it’s worse than they anticipated, because they’ve had a little bit of time off since they closed off Minnesota…I do expect him to play probably in Game 2 or Game 3, but Colorado is deep enough, especially on the blue line.”
Game 1 between the Avalanche and Golden Knights is on Wednesday, starting at 8:00 p.m. ET.
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