After a stand-out season, Colorado Avalanche defenceman Cale Makar was awarded the Norris Trophy, given to the NHL's top defenceman.
Makar finished with 1,631 points, despite earning less first-place votes than Nashville's Roman Josi who received 16,06 points with 98 first-place votes — however Makar's 98 second-place votes outweighed Josi's 76.
The voting makes Makar the first Norris winner since Erik Karlsson in 2014-25 to win despite not receiving the most first-place votes.
Victor Hedman finished third with 940 points and four first-place votes, 14-second places votes and 142 third-place votes.
Just two seasons after winning the Calder Memorial Trophy, given to the NHL's top rookie, Makar proved his place in the league in just his fourth season as the Avalanche topped the Western Conference.
Makar finished his regular season with 28 goals and 58 assists for 86 points in 77 games, averaging 1.12 points per game, just behind Roman Josi's 1.20 for most in the salary cap era. He also averaged the most minutes (25:40) and had the best goals for percentage, all situations (68.49) among finalists.
While he finished 10 points behind Josi, Makar’s 28 goals — which led all defenceman — is still tied for the 24th-most goals scored by a defenceman in NHL history and the third-most in the salary cap era.
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