The New Jersey Devils are one of the better teams in the league this season. There are a few reasons why the team has seen such an incredible turnaround. There are obviously the upgades on the blue line and in net. The Devils spent big on Brett Pesce, Brenden Dillon, and Jacob Markstrom. They also are getting big contributions by the bounce-back season of Jonas Siegenthaler and the surprising rise of Johnathan Kovacevic.
This is all happening under new head coach Sheldon Keefe. Keefe has brought a structure for defense that is working much better than last year's system. It's still all under Ryan McGill, but Keefe has clearly impacted how this team plays. This is also impacting how the star forwards play.
Nico Hischier has always been a defensively responsible forward. Just two years ago, he finished second in Selke Trophy voting, losing to a retiring Patrice Bergeron. It became clear that Hischier was going to be one of the heir apparent to Bergeron's throne. He would join the likes of Aleksander Barkov and Roope Hintz as players who could be winning this trophy for years to come.
Last season, despite how bad things went, Hischier still received votes for the best defensive forward award. He finished 19th in voting, even getting a second-place vote in the process. Jesper Bratt also received a vote for the award in 2024. With the Devils back in contention, it seems like this team would be the one back in awards contention, and those same names would be at the NHL Awards ceremony in Las Vegas (unless they no longer do it like has been rumored).
However, there is a new contender in the race, and it's an expected one.
Jack Hughes has been so good defensively this season, he should be in contention for the Selke Trophy.
Jack Hughes has been fantastic defensively this season. At 5v5, he's only been on the ice for 19 goals against in just under 600 minutes of ice time. According to Natural Stat Trick, Hughes has been on the ice for 9.81 high-danger chances per 60 minutes, which is in the same area as Hischier, who has been on the ice for 9.21 HDCA per 60.
Hughes' 5v5 play has been good, but it's not what is going to win him this award. It's his penalty kill prowess that will. Hughes has spent 19 minutes on the PK this season. The Devils have the eighth ranked penalty kill in the entire league, stopping 82.6% of chances against. While Hischier has more PK minutes, Hughes has not seen a power play goal scored against him. That's actually insane. In 19 minutes with the man disadvantage, Hughes' line hasn't allowed a goal.
On top of that, Hughes' line has scored a shorthanded goal with him on the ice. They are +1 on the penalty kill. With Hughes on the ice, the Devils allow one high-danger chance against on the PK every three minutes. With Hischier, it's a little under every two minutes. Hughes has been better on the PK, and it's not even like Hischier has been bad.
We also have to understand that Jack Hughes is one of the biggest stars in the league. He's on the cover of the NHL video game with his brothers. He might get Hart Trophy votes this season (although he seems pretty far away from winning it). The Selke Trophy might be a really interesting constellation prize.
There is a deep competition for the Selke this season, with Barkov doing a good job defending his crown, plus good seasons from the likes of Mitch Marner of Toronto and Anthony Cirelli in Tampa. The story surrounding Hughes' eligibility is as important as the production on the ice. This story is as good as any in the league.