The New Jersey Devils lost a ton when Jack Hughes cut his hand during a team dinner in November. They lost their star player for more than a month, and then he lost his effectiveness when he tried to wear a cast under his hockey gloves. They lost their place in the standings and the lead they built in October. So much hockey revenue was lost because of Hughes’s ineffectiveness. Who knows, the Quinn Hughes opportunity might have been lost because of the injury and Tom Fitzgerald’s hesitance to go all in.
We also lost one of the biggest advantages the Devils had on special teams. Because of his injury, Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe was no longer using him on the penalty kill. Using him for the extra minutes seemed like something he didn’t want to risk with the state of the team.
Bottom line, the Devils needed Jack Hughes for offense. While he is overall an underrated defensive player, he was nowhere near the player with the cast on his hand.
When looking at Hughes on the PK last season, he was fourth in the league in chance percentage. He was on the ice for 12 chances for and just 28 against in 25 minutes. The numbers are about the same for high-danger chances, and we see Hughes get himself in position for chances of extreme danger.
This follows a trend for Hughes. He was on the ice for two goals for and two goals against in 25 PK minutes. Over a full season, assuming he continues on this trajectory, that would add something like nine goals on the season. Adding nine shorthanded goals to the team would have a major impact.
This is the easiest Jack Hughes decision in training camp
Want to know how big an impact? It would turn the Devils’ goal differential last season from -24 to -15. Still not great, but just putting one player on the PK and adding to the goal total is incredibly impactful.
Hughes had similar numbers on the penalty kill in Keefe’s first year as head coach. He is the exact type of player a coach wants on the kill. His main objective is to get the puck out of the zone and end the threat. Too many Devils players were waiting for the threat to come, hoping to neutralize it, then clear on the rebound.
Hughes brings an aggressiveness to the PK that helps him thrive on the unit. He also played alongside Jesper Bratt, who is legitimately responsible defensively while also having the speed to keep up with Hughes.
This feels like a decision that should be an easy one for Keefe going into training camp. There are plenty of players who can play on the PK this season, but Hughes might be the best one you have on the team.
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