The New Jersey Devils see centers Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier make the list on the annual NHL Network rankings of top centers in the League. Hughes was ranked ninth, while Hischier was ranked 20th heading into the 2024-25 season. Last season, Hughes was ranked the sixth-best center by NHL Network. At the same time, Hischier was ranked the 14th-best center by NHL Network.
Presenting the Top 20 Centers Right Now! Thoughts? 🧐#NHLTopPlayers | @NHL pic.twitter.com/r8GS5JFgp6
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 21, 2024
These two players have been the foundation for the Devils down the middle. Jack Hughes is a superstar in this league.
#⃣9⃣ is Jack Hughes, the only player to record three consecutive point-per-game seasons in @NJDevils history.#NHLTopPlayers | #NJDevils pic.twitter.com/YQ3QxYi9sr
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 21, 2024
He was a star before he was drafted number one overall in the 2019 NHL Draft coming out of the US National Development Program. Each year, Hughes has gotten better as a player. It was a rough go early on as an 18-year-old as he needed to fill into his man body; however, the expectation is Hughes can be a nominee and a winner of the Hart Trophy, given to the most valuable player in the NHL.
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It was a disappointing season for Jack Hughes. He was sidelined multiple times with a shoulder injury, which kept him out of the lineup for most of the season. He finally had season-ending surgery in April. Before the injuries, Hughes was on an MVP pace. Hughes has recorded 17 points (four goals, 13 assists) in the Devils first six games.
His 14 points in five games is one off the official NHL record. Wayne Gretzky had 15 points in five games. However, Hughes passed Patrick Marleau for the most points in his team’s first five games since 2010-11.
However, Hughes finished with 74 points (27 goals and 47 assists) in 62 games. The prior season saw him record 99 points (43 goals and 56 assists) in 78 games—all career highs for the superstar of the Devils. In the 2022-23 season, Hughes became the Devils first 40-goal scorer since Zach Parise in 2008-09 to score 40 goals. Plus, his 99 points broke Patrik Elias‘s franchise record of 96.
If he can stay healthy, Jack Hughes could be the Devils’ first 100-point player in franchise history. That is the big question mark. But it seems the team goes as Jack goes, and if Hughes is not in the lineup, they struggle.
“When he’s in the lineup, he is as good as just about anybody in the league, and a lot of the different things offensively, just an absolute puck dominant player,” Mike Johnson said on NHL Network. “He has impressed me in his career with his ability to generate offense for himself.
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Hischier was drafted number one overall at the 2017 NHL Draft. The Devils captain had a bit of a down year, as the team struggled and failed to make the playoffs. Everything that could go wrong went wrong for the Devils. Not to mention, Hischier dealt with injuries this past season.
Starting off our Top 20 Centers Right Now countdown is @NJDevils captain Nico Hischier coming in at #20 ?#NHLTopPlayers | #NJDevils pic.twitter.com/hXvYhFzLQJ
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 21, 2024
After recording a career-high 80 points to go with career highs in goals (31) and assists (49), where he was nominated for the Selke Award, given to the forward voted best to excel in the defensive aspects of the game as he continues to play in all situations for the Devils.
“He plays in every situation,” Mike Johnson said on NHL Network. “He’s on the penalty kill; he’s on the power play; he has to match up against other team’s best players, which is not an easy task, while also being responsible to go create offence for yourself.”
Though his numbers came down, it was still a good season. Despite his injuries, Hischier recorded 67 points (27 goals and 40 assists), falling three goals short of 30 goals. Not to mention, he has taken strides in the faceoff circle. Last season, he had a career-best 56.6 winning percentage in the faceoff circle, up from the previous year’s 53.9 percent. His all-around game as a two-way center has taken off. He can play first- or second-line center for the Devils.
Not only has he developed as a player, but as a leader as well. Hischier found his voice as the Devils’ captain last season. During tough times last year, he spoke up in the media, asking his teammates to dig deeper and figure out what kind of team they wanted to be. You could tell how disappointing it was that the Devils did not make the playoffs last season. The Devils’ captain is motivated to bring his team back after all the changes they made this off-season.
The New Jersey Devils are set down the middle with Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes for the foreseeable future. They are also on very team-friendly contracts.
