You may or may not have noticed, but Quinn Hughes is pretty good at hockey. There's a reason why he's one of just seven players who were recently ranked in the top tier when it comes to trade value.
Hughes is playing so well, that not only does he have an excellent chance to claim a second consecutive Norris Trophy, but he could genuinely also contend for the Hart Memorial Trophy. Pure and simple, the Canucks and their fans are lucky to have him.
The latest such example of this came on Saturday against the Detroit Red Wings, when his three assists took him to 313 for his career, which are the most in Canucks history by a defenceman. This is special, considering he's only playing his sixth full season in the NHL.
This brings to mind four other Canucks franchise milestones which we previously wrote about back in July, to keep an eye on during this season. Let's check in on those four milestones now, and the players who are aiming to move up in the respective milestone categories.
Most points by a D-Man
We begin with Hughes, because why not? For anyone wondering, the person he overtook to set the assists record for a Canucks defenceman, is none other than Alex Edler.
This is extremely relevant, because Hughes also has his sights set on another franchise record which the Canucks legend currently holds. More specifically, the most overall points for a defenceman in team history.
Edler currently sits in first place on 409 points, which was set over the course of 17 NHL seasons in Vancouver. At the time of writing Hughes has 361 career NHL points, which leaves him just 48 behind.
With 28 points on the season through 23 games, Hughes is well on course to catch and surpass Edler. The only thing which can realistically derail him is an injury, which we wouldn't dismiss so easily, given everything the Canucks have already had to deal with this season. (Bereavement, a cancer diagnosis announcement, a first-of-its-kind hockey injury, and an indefinite personal level of absence.)
Top 10 for assists
It wasn't too long ago, that things were looking really concerning for Elias Pettersson. With only four points in the first 10 games of the 2024-25 campaign, his level of play was not worthy of the eight-year, $92.8 million contract extension he had signed back in March.
These struggles were made more concerning by the fact that they extended back to the second half of last season, when Pettersson had 31 points in 46 games. This including just six in 13 playoff contests, which is a time when you best players are meant to be stepping up, not retreating into the shadows.
The four-time All-Star's reputation was undoubtedly suffering, but then something happened and now he's looking as good as ever, with 17 points in the past 13 games. This includes a season-high three assists in the most recent game against the Red Wings, which now takes him onto 14 helpers for the season.
This is important, as Pettersson has 256 assists as of Monday morning, and is closing in on André Boudrias who is 10th in team history with 267. Assuming the Sweden native doesn't suffer another slump this season, he also has the chance to catch Dennis Kearns, who is in ninth place with 290 helpers.
Moving up the goal-scoring charts
To say it's been an eventful time for Brock Boeser, would be quite the understatement. Last season ended prematurely for him in the playoffs, as a blood clot issue forced him to miss the conclusion of the Canucks' second round series against the Edmonton Oilers.
Even though Boeser has battled back from this, he isn't entirely in the clear yet, with the Canucks needed to monitor his progress throughout this season. And while we can't prove it in any way, we do at least wonder if this has contributed to the delay in negotiating a contract extension with the two-time All-Star.
On top of all this, Boeser has also missed playing time this season due to a concussion, which came as a result of an illegal check to the head from Kings forward Tanner Jeannot. In any event, the 27-year-old is still closing in on the top 10 for goals in Canucks history.
As a result of six goals to begin the 2024-25 campaign, Boeser now sits just eight behind Alex Burrows, who is in 10th place on 193. For what it's worth and something to keep an eye on, Thomas Gradin is ninth with 197 goals, while Bo Horvat is eighth on 201 goals.
Career wins for a goalie
Okay, you've got us - this one is a little different, in that the player this elates to hasn't actually had any movement since the beginning of the season. The player in question is Thatcher Demko, who still sits on 116 wins, which is the fourth-most in Canucks history for a goalie.
Demko is currently 10 behind Richard Brodeur, who has 126 wins. The two-time All-Star is certainly capable of catching and surpassing Brodeur this season, but he needs to start playing again soon!
In this respect, Demko's return is apparently imminent, but nothing is certain still. One recent report had him playing before the end of the current road trip -- which now only has one game remaining -- while another had the Canucks waiting until they returned to Vancouver, to get him back between the pipes.
Irrespective, one thing we do know 100 percent, is that the 28-year-old isn't going to catch Kirk McLean anytime soon, who is in second place on 211 wins. Not only does Demko need to actually start playing again, but he also has to overcome his reputation -- harsh or not -- of being injury-prone.
NB: All statistics are provided courtesy of Hockey Reference