Canucks: 3 takeaways from Quinn Hughes’ rookie season
He was MVP of the Canucks this year
Honestly, there were three players on the Canucks this year that could be considered the MVP. Jacob Markstrom, Elias Pettersson, and Hughes were all phenomenal in their own way and it’s really difficult to pick just one. But for argument’s sake, let’s dive into why Hughes deserves the honor.
As a rookie, Hughes walked into Vancouver and instantly took over the blueline. In fact, in 50 years of existence in the NHL, the Canucks blueline has never possessed someone as insanely gifted as the shifty defender. His possession numbers were off the chart impressive, and Vancouver really benefitted each and every time he was on the ice. He was the team’s best option on defense at both ends of the ice and he was excellent at controlling play at five-on-five.
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Point production would have taken a dip this year if it weren’t for the helping hand lent by Hughes. And to be quite frank, it wouldn’t have been nearly as entertaining of a season. The kid was born with a natural God-given ability to walk the line and create scoring chances. Every time he touched the puck you’d be caught wide-eyed and jaw-dropped just waiting for him to pull off something special from the blade of his stick.
Not once did he shy away from carrying the puck this year. He loved having that puck on his tape. Retrieving and maintaining possession is one of his stronger assets, we’re talking about one of the greatest possession defenders to ever wear a blue and green jersey in Vancouver. That’s how good he is. Despite his smaller size, you might be surprised at first but there’s no getting it back once he’s got ahold of it.
Size and stature was a big question mark for Hughes coming into this season as nobody knew how his college experience would translate to the long schedule of the NHL. However, he proved the doubters wrong and surprisingly cranked up his production stepping up to be the man to help carry the defense down the stretch. He only grew more confident are more productive as the year went on.