Avalanche stars had their fingerprints all over the 2025 NHLPA player poll

The National Hockey League Players’ Association released the results of the 2025 Players Poll on Tuesday morning, and the Colorado Avalanche were well-represented in the poll. Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar made appearances all over, with a fan-favorite player getting his name in the mix as well. The poll consists of 12 questions that were answered anonymously by players from all 32 teams.

Best overall defenseman – Cale Makar, 71.78% of votes

This one is a no-brainer to fans around the league, and the players put a stamp on it. Makar, who became the first D-man to score 30 goals in a season since 2009, has been dominant at the blue line all season. His ability to skate, shoot and play defense simultaneously is a combination that no one else has in the league, and it is the reason why he is poised to win the Norris Trophy for the second time in four years.

Best overall skater – Cale Makar (11.41%) and Nathan MacKinnon (8.91%)

While the Avs’ stars came up short of Edmonton’s Connor McDavid in this one, they still finished second and third in the voting. Makar has the most speed bursts of at least 22 miles per hour in the league amongst defenseman (27), and MacKinnon has the most such bursts in the entire league (83), according to NHL EDGE stats. While it’s clear that McDavid is one-of-a-kind in this category, the league is well aware of the two-headed snaked in Colorado.

On top of these two, Miles Wood set the mark this season for the fastest skating burst in the entire league when he had a 24.82 MPH burst earlier in the month. Whatever head coach Jared Bednar is doing at practice to get his players on the move, it’s working.

Best overall forward – Nathan MacKinnon, 9.62%

MacKinnon finished in second place for votes in this category, trailing McDavid again. There have constantly been debates between these two on who’s better, which will most likely be a never-ending debate. However, MacKinnon swept McDavid in their only playoff meeting back in 2022, and has more Stanley Cups than the Oilers star. Coming off his first Hart Trophy in 2024, MacKinnon has showed time and time again that he’s top-two in the legue.

Most complete player – Nathan MacKinnon, 7.14%

MacKinnon finished behind his good friend Sidney Crosby and Florida Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov in this section. MacKinnon’s combination of scoring, passing and skating make him a force to be concerned with in all areas of the game. He is the driver of Colorado’s offense, and has the accolades to prove it.

Player that would be a good broadcaster – Erik Johnson, 2.52%

This one should also be no surprise to Avs fans. The Condor is one of the most beloved players in franchise history and has a personality that’s second-to-none. Sports television has thrived off of former players who have great personalities and elite knowledge of the game, and Johnson would make an excellent broadcaster (he might have to fix his teeth before going on camera, however).

Johnson finished in sixth place in this category, but the votes were fairly distributed as first place only received 4.85% of the total votes.

The poll shows that the rest of the league has respect for the Avalanche superstars. While Makar and MacKinnon probably don’t have a strong opinion on this, it’s a good reminder for fans to not take this stretch of successful hockey for granted.