Why Quinn Hughes should represent the Canucks at the All Star Game
By Sean Warren
Quinn Hughes has been the best Canucks player this season and deserves to represent the club this season at the 2020 NHL All Star Game.
Saturday, January 25, 2020, will see the Stanley Cup Champion, St. Louis Blues, host the league’s showcase of its biggest stars. Each of the Canucks’ most recent rookie phenoms have had a trip to the game and that trend should continue with rookie sensation Quinn Hughes.
The Fan Voting is already open and fans can put in up to 10 votes per day. You can vote here: https://www.nhl.com/all-star-ballot and voting will close on December 20.
Various Canucks players have already begun their campaign for “Huggy Bear” to attend the event and for good reason. Hughes currently has 26 points, a point total that puts him a mere two points back of Colorado Avalanche star rookie and fellow defenseman, Cale Makar, for the rookie points lead among defencemen.
In fact, Hughes could very well surpass Elias Pettersson‘s newly set rookie points franchise record as a defenceman. Yes, you read that correctly. A defenceman could set a new record that was once held by Hockey Hall of Famer Pavel Bure and Elias Pettersson.
Hughes has breathed new life into the team on several aspects of the game. Whether it be his one-man breakouts or his ability to quarterback the Canucks’ first power play unit. Despite their recent struggles, the Canucks boast an elite five-man unit on special teams with Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, Bo Horvat and JT Miller. Hughes is able to create time and space for the big shots from Pettersson and Boeser with his generational skating ability and vision.
One of the things that scouts thought might be a weaker spot for Hughes was his shot. Being a diminutive player and not having the weight or stature typical of a power play defenseman, many thought he wouldn’t have the power to put into a point shot. However, he has proven those pundits wrong as he has showcased himself as a legitimate shooting option which has further created room for his power play unit.
Thomas Drance of The Athletic recently wrote an article about how Quinn Hughes could even eclipse Cale Makar in points and earn him the Calder Memorial Trophy to become the second consecutive Canucks player to do so. The fanfare around Hughes has been quieter thus far than the parading that occurred when Boeser and Pettersson were rookies and that needs to change quickly in order to bring the attention to him that he is due.
It’s time for Canucks fans to rally around Quinn Hughes. Vote him into the All Star Game and allow him to display his abilities on the league stage. It will further his Calder bid and give the rookie a great experience to learn from some of the best players in the NHL. The campaign begins now.