Hughes vs. Makar: The NHL’s best defensemen finally meet in a playoff showdown

Key facts

• Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar made their NHL debuts 18 days apart in 2019.
• Makar has 507 career points, Hughes has 482 — first and second among defensemen since 2019-20.
• Makar has won two Norris Trophies; Hughes has won one and been a finalist the past two years.
• In Game 1 of the second-round series, Colorado won 9-6; Makar had three points including two third-period goals, Hughes had three points and 28:57 ice time.
• The Wild acquired Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks on Dec. 12, 2025, in a trade headlined by prospect Zeev Buium.
• Both teams are missing key defensemen: Josh Manson for Colorado, Jonas Brodin for Minnesota.

A long-awaited playoff meeting

For more than seven years, Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar have been linked by their draft classes, their college backgrounds, and their dominance from the blue line. They debuted 18 days apart in 2019 and have since combined for three Norris Trophies and nearly 1,000 points. Yet until now, they had never faced each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That changed Sunday night at Ball Arena in Denver, where Makar’s Colorado Avalanche defeated Hughes’s Minnesota Wild 9-6 in Game 1 of their second-round series. The game lived up to the billing: both defensemen recorded three points, and Makar scored two third-period goals, including the go-ahead tally and an insurance marker with 2:54 remaining. Hughes led all skaters with 28:57 of ice time and set up Ryan Hartman’s goal with a spinning backhand pass.

Two elite defensemen, different strengths

Makar and Hughes are widely regarded as the NHL’s top two defensemen, but their styles differ in key ways. Makar has the edge defensively and possesses a superior shot, as he demonstrated by taking over Game 1 in the third period. He is already tied for 10th all-time among defensemen with four 20-goal seasons. Hughes, by contrast, is unmatched in elusiveness and offensive-zone control. This season, he led all defensemen in end-to-end rushes and stretch passes, and the Wild’s on-ice expected goals at 5-on-5 with Hughes on the ice (3.23 per hour) is the highest for any Wild defenseman in franchise history. “Even when it feels really that you’re kind of draped all over them, they’re both slipping away from guys,” said Avalanche forward Brock Nelson, who played with Hughes on the U.S. Olympic team. “Great shooting and passing opportunities, too.” Wild forward Yakov Trenin, a former Avalanche player, described both as “so fast, so shifty” and praised their ability to read the game.

A rivalry forged in awards and statistics

The Hughes-Makar comparison dates back to their Calder Trophy race in 2019-20, which Makar won. Since then, they have finished first and second in points among defensemen, with Makar’s 507 points leading all blueliners and Hughes’s 482 ranking second. Makar has 26 more goals than any other defenseman over that span; Hughes has 45 more assists than the next closest, Makar. They have won three of the past four Norris Trophies, with Makar finishing in the top three for five straight seasons and Hughes for the past two. “Pretty cool to be able to come in with him,” said Hughes, 26, of the 27-year-old Makar. “You want to play the best, and (we) have that opportunity this series with Colorado.” Makar downplayed the individual matchup, saying, “It’s a team game. It’s not individual stuff.”

Mutual teammates offer perspective

Several players who have shared the ice with both Hughes and Makar provided insight into their personalities and games. Nelson, who won Olympic gold with Hughes, noted their ability to evade pressure. Avalanche defenseman Nick Blankenburg, a college teammate of Hughes at Michigan, said both are quiet initially but “once they get more comfortable, they always like to crack a joke and chirp a guy.” Wild forward Nico Sturm, who won the Stanley Cup with Makar in 2022, described both as laid back. Avalanche goalie Scott Wedgewood, who trains with Hughes in Michigan during the offseason, called them introverted. “Made (me) a better coach, that’s for sure,” said Wild coach John Hynes, who worked with Hughes at the Olympics. “He’s a leader, he’s really intelligent, cares about the game, he’s coachable. He brings the on and the off-ice component of an elite player.”

The trade that changed Minnesota’s trajectory

The Wild were a very good team on Dec. 12, 2025, but they became a top Stanley Cup contender the following day when they acquired Hughes from the Vancouver Canucks. The trade, the biggest of the season, sent a huge package of assets headlined by former University of Denver star Zeev Buium to Vancouver. Hughes’s arrival transformed Minnesota’s historically plodding offense. With Hughes on the ice at 5-on-5, the Wild averaged 3.23 expected goals per hour, the most of any Wild defenseman in any season. His defensive partner, Brock Faber, ranks second at 3.17; no other Wild defenseman has averaged more than 3.00. In the first round against Dallas, the Stars tried to pressure Hughes with forechecking and physical play, but he made few mistakes and consistently moved the puck north. The series against Colorado presents an even stiffer test, especially with both teams missing key second-pairing defensemen: Josh Manson for the Avalanche and Jonas Brodin for the Wild.

What’s at stake in the series

The winner of this series advances to the Western Conference Final, with a chance to play for the Stanley Cup. For Hughes and Makar, the matchup offers the closest thing yet to an answer to the question that has followed them throughout the 2020s: Who is better? The Olympics provided a preview, with Hughes’s Team USA edging Makar’s Team Canada, but a best-of-seven playoff series is the ultimate stage. “It’s just a great opportunity to go up against those guys,” Hughes said. Makar added: “It’s fun to be able to have this in playoffs. But I don’t think for me (the matchup) is the main motivation at all.” Regardless of their personal focus, the hockey world will be watching as two of the most prolific offensive defensemen in NHL history finally settle their rivalry on the sport’s biggest stage.

The bottom line

• Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar are the NHL’s top two defensemen, with three Norris Trophies and nearly 1,000 combined points since 2019-20.
• Game 1 of the Wild-Avalanche series ended 9-6, with both players recording three points; Makar scored two third-period goals, Hughes had 28:57 ice time.
• Makar excels at goal-scoring and defense; Hughes is the league’s premier transition defenseman, leading in end-to-end rushes and stretch passes.
• The Wild acquired Hughes from Vancouver on Dec. 12, 2025, transforming their offense; his on-ice expected goals rate is the highest in franchise history.
• Both teams are missing key defensemen: Josh Manson (Colorado) and Jonas Brodin (Minnesota).
• The series winner advances to the Western Conference Final, offering the first playoff head-to-head between Hughes and Makar.