Jack Hughes Is A Total Menace On And Off The Ice
Icon Sportswire. Getty Images.I'm going to start off this blog about Jack Hughes by talking about Connor McDavid. Because McJesus kind of ruined everything for every 1st overall pick in the draft to come after him. Ever since McDavid, it's pretty much been expected that if you're the 1st overall pick in your draft that you are going to immediately takeover for your team as an 18-year-old. And after McDavid, it was Matthews who pretty much did the same thing.
But that's not always the case. In fact, it's actually rarely the case. Just because you're the best 18-year-old hockey player on the planet doesn't mean that you're ready to step into an NHL lineup and start dunking on grown ass men left and right.
Jack Hughes is a throwback in that sense. A kid who had plenty of high expectations coming out of the draft, but it still took him a little time to really find his game at the NHL. And by "took him a little time", I'm really only talking about 2.5 years. But compared to McDavid, that's a lifetime. So you had plenty of people doubting Jack Hughes as a future superstar in this league when he signed his 8-year, $64 million contract extension in the middle of last season.
What has he done ever since signing that extension? Well he played 46 more games last season where he put up 24 goals and 29 assists for 53 points. Not sure how great you guys are at math, but 53 is greater than 46. So he was over a ppg to close out last year after signing his extension. And then this season he announced himself as one of the best players on the planet with a 99 point season off of 43 goals and 56 assists. He was a superstar in the regular season, and now he's getting his first taste of Stanley Cup Playoff hockey. I think he enjoys the taste.
Down 2-0 in the series after dropping both games at home, and then Jack Hughes comes out and spanks the Rangers all across Madison Square Garden in the next 2. The Devils were dead to rights. They looked like they should have been boarding their flights this morning to go on summer vacation. But Jack Hughes is a menace and he's not worried about a goddamn thing. He's not afraid of the moment. The Devils weren't shook to start the series, they were just playing like shit.
And this aspect of his game is really where Jack Hughes starts to separate himself from other superstars like Connor McDavid. Because when it comes to talking to the media, there might not be a better star in the game right now than Jack. If you could add quotes to the media to your points total on the season, Jack Hughes would have run away with the Art Ross race.
Jack Hughes doesn't even know how to give a canned response. You ask the guy a question and he's just gonna chat you up like he's having any regular conversation. He'll just say whatever's on his mind because it doesn't stay there for too long.
"Instead of like going this way, I brought my route that way" might not be the most cerebral breakdown of a play ever. But that's just Jack Hughes hockey, baby. The man doesn't think, he just does. That's what makes him one of the best in the game. It's like trying to explain to someone how to breathe oxygen. Superstars don't need to explain shit. Everybody can just sit back and watch.