Quote:
Originally Posted by Philly06Cup
Makar is great. But... Something people don't talk about enough is how much he benefits from playing on a stacked team and with Mackinnon / Rantanen / (Landeskog / Nichuskin).
-Most coaches rotate their defensemen and forwards independent of each other. Not in Colorado. Basically anytime the Mackinnon/Rantanen line is on the ice, the coach pairs them with Makar/Toews. They are a 5 man unit 5on5.
-Look at Devon Toews. He was an average defenseman for NYI. In Colorado, he's constantly paired with MacKinnon/Rantanen/Makar -- and now he looks like a superstar.
-Makar gets a ton of points. His advanced stats look amazing. But a huge product of that is who he plays with.
Fancy stats chart for those interested. Makar's two years in Colorado; about half of his icetime is with the top line, and his stats drop a significant amount when he is away from them.
On the flip side, Josi gets paired with all of his teammates equally. His advanced stats will look worse because of it. He is definitively the one who stirs the drink. |
I've never looked at it that way, and I don't doubt it's true.
But by god, the eye test shows all those guys benefit playing with Makar, and not the other way around. He's explosive, cerebral, creative and structured. He's basically a perfect player, and he's barely out of high school