The New Jersey Devils have a different swagger since coming back from the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy. Many Devils players showed up in a big way on the international stage. Jacob Markstrom took the starting job from Filip Gustavsson and put Sweden back into contention before a great effort against Team USA. Timo Meier brought March Meier to Milan and at one point was on pace to break a record. Simon Nemec brought the Slovakians to the medal round as their top defenseman.
Nobody did what Jack Hughes did, obviously. Hughes was all over the lineup for the Americans, but Mike Sullivan knew in overtime that Hughes was one of the best players in the world. And on that international stage, Hughes delivered.
He scored the Golden Goal, beating Team Canada in overtime to secure their first Olympic gold medal in 46 years. It was the type of magic Hughes has been salivating for since he joined professional hockey in 2019.
Hughes loves a stage, and he showed that with the Golden Goal. He also shows that against the New York Rangers. The Hudson River Rivalry may not be what it was just a couple of years ago, but it’s still important to Hughes. He has 26 career games against the Rangers, and he’s scored 20 goals. If he played the Rangers for an 82-game season at his current pace, he’d have 63 goals and 47 assists for 110 points.
Hughes also has 16 penalty minutes against the Rangers in his career. He has no more than six against any other team in his career.
There’s no doubt that the Rangers fans dislike Hughes. They thought they got the better player in 2019 when they took Kaapo Kakko second overall, but that debate is over with him struggling to contribute at a high level in Seattle. Rangers fans dislike Hughes, but most respect him as an American hero. He brought happiness to us all, and he combined with Rangers players Vincent Trocheck and J.T. Miller (along with head coach Sullivan) to win a gold medal.
We would never boo Trocheck and Miller during a celebration of their Olympic win. However, one prominent Rangers fan can’t say the same. WFAN’s Shaun Morash says he will boo Hughes when he throws out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium on Friday night.
Tiki ripped @ShaunMorash for his plan to boo Jack Hughes when he throws out the first pitch tomorrow 😂 pic.twitter.com/p9gx0dQm0e
— WFAN Sports Radio (@WFAN660) April 2, 2026
New York radio host has insane argument with himself about Jack Hughes
We don’t need to quote the argument. It was insane, and the thread got smaller as Shaun continued speaking. His co-host Tiki Barber was visibly confused and rightfully called him out. The argument was that he “can” boo Hughes because he’s only an “American Sports Hero” and not an “American Hero.”
What?
What a strange and unnecessary argument. In the decades of WFAN radio shows, this might have been the weirdest argument we’ve heard surrounding hockey, and it was pseudo about baseball.
Listen, we appreciate a good rivalry, but there’s a time and a place. If Morash really boos Hughes, he’ll also boo women’s hockey star Aerin Frankel. Can we just put this nonsense to the side for just a moment to appreciate a good moment for Team USA?
In all likelihood, this is Shaun playing a character for the sake of radio. The argument was not well thought out, and it came off that way. He was grasping at straws from the start. It’s not even a slow news day! We got Yankees and Mets baseball, the Knicks preparing for the playoffs, March Madness, and the Masters on the horizon.