Quinn Hughes rips critics on his defensive ability
In his short five-year career with the Vancouver Canucks, the league has marked Quinn Hughes as one of the top offensive defensemen in the NHL. But, with that being said, how good is he defensively? Hughes has faced criticism from analysts that he is a one-dimensional player and can’t play defense. Now, Hughes has barked back against those critics.
“I feel like my game’s really good right now,” Quinn Hughes said, courtesy of TSN. “I’m proud that I’m a plus. I’m playing a lot of minutes, and defensively, I’ve been trusted against the top lines. Anyone that says I’m a defensive liability, frankly, doesn’t watch me play at this point.” (Full quotes via theScore.)
Hughes, 23, has been nothing short of phenomenal this season. In only 66 games, Hughes is about to pass his career high in points and has already broken his assists high. But how has he been defensively? In his career, Hughes has drawn question marks around his defensive ability, but he is having his best statistical defensive season yet this season. Right now, on a below average Canucks team, Hughes has a plus-minus of 16, the highest of his career.
Outside of his offensive and defensive ability, the young Vancouver superstar still believes there is room for improvement.
“I think as far as the numbers, I still haven’t scored a lot. I’ve missed a lot of my chances, and I think that there’s still lots of room to grow, to be honest with you,” Hughes said. “I’m happy with my game; of course, with those (individual) awards, you have to be on a team maybe that wins. But I feel like I’m right there with a lot of the guys, for sure.” (Full quotes via theScore.)
Currently, the Vancouver Canucks sit 16 points outside the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference. Safe to say, the Canucks will not be entertaining a playoff run this season. The Canucks haven’t made the playoffs since the 2020 season and have missed the playoffs in six out of the last seven seasons. But, with a new season looming ahead for the Canucks and Hughes, I’m sure Hughes can lead the boys from Vancouver back to the playoffs soon.
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