Cale Makar and the Colorado Avalanche have started the season poorly, losing their third game in a row, 6-2, to the New York Islanders on Monday.
After the game, Makar spoke about his performance.
"I think just a lot of myself, just not moving my feet, not playing my game. ... I got to be better for these guys," he said.
Even with the loss, Makar found some positives.
"After the first two games, there were some positives to take out of this. It's definitely a lot closer game if I don’t play tonight," he added.
The Avalanche started the game strong, but after scoring first, they quickly gave up two goals. Makar expressed frustration with the timing of the goals, especially the one at the end of the first period.
"It's tough one in the period, knowing that they just scored," he said.
Makar has a cap hit of $9 million and signed a six-year $54 million deal this season is seen as a key player for the Avalanche.
"Overall, we got to be better. But yeah, as an individual, I got to be a lot better," he added.
In the game, Cale Makar had one assist and a -3 rating. That means he was on the ice for three goals against. He took two shots on goal and played for 22 minutes and 26 seconds.
The Islanders' offense overpowered Cale Makar and Avalanche's defense in loss
On Monday night, the Colorado Avalanche played the New York Islanders at Ball Arena. Brock Nelson was the star, scoring two goals in the second period. He was joined by Anders Lee, Kyle Palmieri, Anthony Duclair and Mathew Barzal, who also scored. Ilya Sorokin had a strong return in goal, stopping 32 shots.
Calum Ritchie scored the first goal for the Avalanche, making it 1-0 over a minute into the game. The Islanders responded quickly, with Anders Lee tying the score. Kyle Palmieri put the Islanders ahead 2-1. Brock Nelson extended the lead with a short-handed goal, getting past Cale Makar.
Casey Mittelstadt scored early in the third period, making it 4-2. Later, Anthony Duclair and Mathew Barzal added goals for the Islanders to secure the win. The Avalanche have lost three games in a row for the first time since 2008-09.