New Jersey Devils forward Jack Hughes is considered one of the best players in the NHL right now, but injuries have started to raise doubts among those in the national media. This offseason, Hughes has seen his star's shine wear just a little. Now 24 years old, Hughes isn't considered among the ultra-young players, with future stars like Connor Bedard, Macklin Cellebrini, and even his brother Luke Hughes taking that mantle.
Hughes is expected to be in his prime. However, shoulder issues have forced Hughes to miss huge chunks of time, and he's yet to hit 100 points in a season because of it.
Because of those injuries, Hughes now finds him in the interesting world of being underrated. He was just left out of the top 10 centers argument, seeing himself behind Nick Suzuki and Mark Scheifele on the NHL Network list. He also was behind Ottawa Senators center Tim Stutzle on the list of top players under 25 years old.
These are arbitrary lists that come strictly from either one person’s or a panel of people’s opinions, but at the end of the day, they don’t truly matter. Unless they do.
These types of opinions could fuel a fire in Jack Hughes. We know he already steps up big in the biggest matchups. He has 16 goals and 28 points in 23 career games against the New York Rangers, the Devils biggest rival. In the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs, with the Devils down 2-0 in the series, Jack Hughes scored a goal in Games 3 and 4 to help even the series. And with the Devils down 2-0 to the Hurricanes in the next round, he put up two goals and two assists in a huge win in Game 3.
Jack Hughes should use bad rankings as motivation
Knowing the Devils lean on Hughes in those big moments, we have to imagine understanding his rankings in the NHL might matter, even if it’s a little bit. Proving people wrong is a great motivation factor for any great player.
If this is truly motivating to Hughes, we might see him go into psycho mode. Hughes is usually a happy-go-lucky player who often has a smile on his face. When he’s truly focused on dominating the competition, he’s unstoppable.
We have to hope that the Devils get this version of Hughes. His back is against the wall if he wants to become one of the game’s best. Hopefully, he understands the narrative and does everything in his power to change it.