The NHL has put plans in motion to decentralize the Draft. But maybe we’ll see a decentralized version of the NHL Awards in June 2024, too. Instead of holding it in a glitzy location like Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena…why not hold it at the Hughes family residence? Maybe the summer home in Bloomington, Michigan?
Through the season’s first month, Jack has an early claim to the Art Ross Trophy as the league’s top scorer, the Hart Trophy as MVP, the Ted Lindsay Award for most outstanding player as voted by the players, and even the Lady Byng Trophy for most gentlemanly player, for which he finished as the runner-up last season. With a staggering 18 points in eight games, Hughes is scoring at a season-opening rate only matched by legends Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Mike Bossy.
Now, if we shift our focus westward, look at what oldest brother Quinn Hughes is accomplishing in Vancouver. His puck-moving prowess has always been celebrated; last season he became the first defenseman in 29 years to record consecutive 60-assist seasonsthe fastest defenseman ever to reach 200 career assists. But Quinn’s 5-foot-10, 180-pound frame belied the fact he was great all-around defenseman, not just a scoring weapon.