Terrifying scene involving Cale Makar as the arena goes silent

Cale Makar gave Jared Bednar and the Avalanche a scare after Brandt Clarke drove Colorado's star defenseman hard into the end boards.

The sequence immediately changed the mood in the building. Makar went into the boards awkwardly with Clarke arriving from behind, creating an uncomfortable moment for an Avalanche team already monitoring its star closely.

The concern was amplified by Makar's recent injury situation. Seeing him absorb that kind of contact so soon after returning was exactly the type of scene Colorado wanted to avoid.

Makar had created the play himself, using his defense to spring loose on a breakaway before losing control of the puck as he prepared to shoot.

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Clarke caught him near the end boards and landed on top of him. The contact sent Makar down hard, with the crowd's reaction reflecting how quickly the sequence became concerning.

And Colorado's response came immediately. Jack Hughes moved toward Clarke after the collision and gave him a shove, drawing a penalty and sending the Avalanche back to the penalty kill.

Makar hit raises immediate concern for Avalanche

The eye test made the concern easy to understand: Makar was moving at speed toward the end boards when Clarke made contact, sending the defenseman down before Clarke came over top of him.

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That's the difficult balance for Bednar. Makar's skating and willingness to attack open ice are central to Colorado's transition game, but those rushes can also leave him exposed when defenders are chasing from behind.

The Avalanche can live with physical hockey. What they don't want is their top defenseman repeatedly finding himself in vulnerable positions against the boards, especially this early after an injury absence.

The incident also added another layer to an already heated game. Nathan MacKinnon later went after Clarke, and the broadcast wondered whether the tension traced back to Clarke's earlier contact on Makar.

For Colorado, the biggest issue wasn't retaliation. It was seeing Makar get back up and remain available.

Any extended absence involving Makar would immediately reshape Bednar's blue line, power-play deployment and transition game. That's why one heavy collision was enough to leave the arena holding its breath.

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