New Jersey was down 4-2 with two minutes left in the third period on Saturday when Jack Hughes corralled a pass deep in the Devils’ end.

Skating backward, Hughes turned his body 180 degrees in one smooth motion to maintain his speed and keep control of the puck. The Devils had an extra attacker on the ice and the Washington Capitals were sitting back, an ideal scenario for a burner like Hughes.

As he zoomed through the neutral zone, Hughes looked similar to Connor McDavid – the master of skating. Then, as he went inside-out on veteran defenseman Dmitry Orlov and entered the offensive zone, he looked like Patrick Kane – the one-on-one genius

Hughes ultimately failed to get a shot on goal, his attempt negated by a stick check. Ten seconds later, he slammed his own stick in frustration after a teammate opted to shoot the puck instead of passing to him while he was wide-open.

“He’s only 20 years old, and I like that at a young age he’s got that kind of bravado,” said Ken Daneyko, the longtime Devils defenseman turned TV analyst for MSG Networks.

Daneyko added: “It’s not a selfish act. It’s him saying, ‘When we need a big play, just know where I am. I will get it done.'”

New Jersey eventually scored with the extra attacker and Hughes picked up the primary assist. But that tally was all they could muster in the 4-3 road loss.

Those final two minutes against the Capitals are representative of Hughes’ current place in the NHL universe: he’s a tantalizing, highly productive, and super-competitive center in his third season playing for a team mired in a lengthy rebuild.

Since Dec. 29, Hughes has accumulated 19 goals and 27 assists for 46 points in 33 games. It’s easily the best three months of his career, with a points per game rate of 1.39, which ranks ninth in the league over that stretch. This type of breakout had been a long time coming for the 2019 first overall draft pick.

Via: The Score

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