Welcome back to another edition of The Puck Drop. Now that the basketball season is over, I’m thrilled to go back to my roots and talk about hockey, especially as the NHL playoffs have officially commenced.
Some of you may remember an edition of this column I put out last spring semester titled “The League of Brotherly Love,” where I highlighted various siblings in the NHL that are playing in the league together, or even on the same team.
One of these pairs of siblings on the same team I mentioned happened to be teammates on the New Jersey Devils, Jack and Luke Hughes. Not only does this duo play together on the same squad, but they also have another brother, Quinn, who is a defenseman and current captain for the Vancouver Canucks.
This season, the Devils made the playoffs, however, the Canucks did not. In a recent press conference with the Canucks’ President Jim Rutherford to conclude the season, he dropped some significant news.
That being, soon, we might see all three Hughes brothers in the same jersey.
“It may not boil down to money with [Quinn]. He said before he wants to play with his brothers. And that would be partly out of our control. In our control [is] if we brought his brothers here.” Rutherford said in an article from CBC when asked about Q. Hughes and his contract status.
Whether playing with his brothers for the Devils or the Canucks, the Canucks are doing everything in their power to keep the captain in Vancouver.
“This franchise cannot afford to lose a guy like Quinn Hughes, and we will do everything we can to keep him here.” Rutherford said in the article from CBC.
In his 2024-25 campaign, Q. Hughes tallied 16 goals and 60 assists on the season, racking up 76 points in total after winning the 2024 Norris Trophy at the NHL Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas. The Norris Trophy is awarded annually to the best defenseman in the NHL.
Q. Hughes has two years left on a six-year contract with the Canucks worth $47.1 million; this contract will end at the conclusion of the 2026-27 NHL season.
In the press conference, Rutherford would not elaborate on the matter with Q. Hughes, as he did not want it to be seen as tampering with the situation but described that there are many moving parts on this matter.
Should all three Hughes brothers play on the same squad, it would be generational for the NHL. While there have been three brothers who have played on the same club in the past, like the Staal brothers, this would be monumental.
The Hughes brothers, despite being plagued by injuries from time-to-time, have made waves in their time in the league.
With the elite, fast and skilled offense J. Hughes brings to the ice, the offensive defense L. Hughes brings and the way Q. Hughes gives his teammates good looks consistently in-game; whichever team these brothers end up on will be the one to keep an eye on in the next few years.