Is Quinn Hughes the best defenseman in the world? See for yourself

A generational talent is coming to Utah this week: reigning Norris Trophy winner Quinn Hughes.

The Norris Trophy is awarded to the best defenseman each season, and that’s exactly what Hughes was last year. In addition to leading all defensemen in points, which he’s always at least close to doing, he was a menace in his own zone. He dragged the Vancouver Canucks into the playoffs — something most people didn’t think they’d achieve.

This year, Hughes is proving that last season was not an anomaly. He leads all defensemen in points per game, he controls the play like none other and he is so much fun to watch.

Utah Hockey Club head coach André Tourigny described him on Monday as the “general” of the Canucks because of the way he drives the play. To Hughes, skating the puck through a clogged neutral zone is as easy as it would be if there was nobody there. When he arrives in the offensive zone, he suddenly turns into a wizard, finding lanes and faking out opponents.

“He generates a lot of possession (and) starts a lot of their offense,” Tourigny said.

As high as Tourigny’s praise was for Hughes, he wasn’t prepared to crown him the best defenseman in the league. That title, he said, could be given to any number of guys, including Hughes, Victor Hedman, Drew Doughty, Cale Makar, Adam Fox and Mikhail Sergachev.

Earlier this month, Hughes broke the Canucks’ franchise record for most assists by a defenseman with his 311th. It took his predecessor, Alex Edler, 924 games to reach that plateau, but Hughes did it in just 388 games.

A family affair

Both of Quinn’s brothers, Jack and Luke, play for the New Jersey Devils. They’ve become hockey’s new power family — not unlike the Staals over the last two decades and the Sutters before them.

Jack, the only forward of the bunch, currently sits at 12th in league scoring with 39 points. With his charm and wit, Jack is one of the league’s most marketable players both on and off the ice.

Luke missed the first few weeks of the season with an upper-body injury, but he has been decent since his return. In his 24 games this year, he has one goal and 10 points and is averaging more than 19 minutes a night on the Devils’ second defense pairing. He’s only 21 years old, so he’s still growing into his role.

Where to watch

The Canucks come to town on Wednesday. It will be Hughes’ second time playing in the Delta Center, as he participated in the Canucks’ preseason game there in 2019. The game, which starts at 8 p.m., will be streamed on both Utah HC+ and Utah 16.