Quinn Hughes’ week at the World Junior Summer Showcase was hotter than the heat outside the host venue in Kamloops, British Columbia.
Playing in the province of the team that drafted him seventh overall in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft, Hughes led the mini-tournament in scoring with 1 goal, 5 assists in six games while adding 24 PIMs for the United States squad. Temperature reached well into the high 30’s outside, but inside, Hughes could’ve melted the ice with his on-ice performances.
If you watched the tournament on TSN or followed along through Twitter, there’s an extremely high chance you would’ve seen the exhibits of skill Hughes put on game in, and game out.
Noted as a “roving” type of offensive defenceman that significantly complements the modern-day NHL, Hughes’ dynamic skating ability and sublime puck skills were on full display, as he rose above his peer group and made it look like he was playing summertime shinny with his opponents in what was actually a pretty high paced tournament.
The vision and instincts Hughes possessed there with the clock ticking down was downright ridiculous. Have another look at this amazing set-up by the young American.
The knock on Hughes is that he’s not the biggest defenceman around, as he’s listed at 5’10” and 170-lbs, but you wouldn’t know it by the way he drove to the net here. Watch how he drives to the net and bowls right through the Canadian defender and manages to get off a quality scoring chance that eventually leads to a goal.
Hughes was instrumental in driving the offence and pace for the United States from the backend. In their final game of the showcase, Hughes registered two primary assists in a 6-5 loss to Team Canada.
TSN’s Craig Button was gushing over Hughes the entire tournament and summarized his thoughts as to why the hype train around Hughes is growing rapidly.
Last week, Hughes announced that he’d be returning to the University of Michigan to play his sophomore season, following the paths of fellow American defencemen Charlie McAvoy and Zach Weresnki.
From a talent standpoint, Hughes could’ve easily signed with the Canucks and likely would’ve been one of the team’s best defenceman at just 18-years-old. Quinn and younger brother Jack, who’s slated to be the first overall pick in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft that’ll be held in Vancouver, will be counted on to lead the U.S. at the 2018 World Juniors that coincidentally happens to be in Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia.
"Since he was three or four years old, he was always the best," said Quinn of Jack to Derek Jory of Canucks.com.
"He was that kid in novice that would have like six goals and could lift the puck before anybody else. He was pretty much ahead of the curve from the get-go. It's really fun being out there with him."
Canucks fans are hoping a little lottery luck goes their way this season in hopes of landing Jack at the upcoming draft. The chemistry between the two will surely remind hockey fans in Vancouver of another talented brotherly combo that just recently retired.
From Henrik and Daniel Sedin, to Quinn and Jack Hughes. It's entirely possible, Canucks fans.
