There is a reason why the NHL Network named New Jersey Devils forwards Nico Hischier and Jack Hughes to its Top 20 Centers list in the summer. The talent and skill were there offensively, but what these players are doing defensively is remarkable.
Nico Hischier Showing Why the New Jersey Devils Are His Team
Nico Hischier was already one of the best two-way centers in the game despite his ranking on the list in the summer. While he has cooled off offensively, he gets the tough assignments defensively each night. But that is why Hischier was drafted number one overall in 2017. While offensive ability and talent were there, the Devils envisioned him as a 200-foot player who would eventually become a Selke Trophy winner.
“He does a lot of little things well, and I think he’s probably somewhat overshadowed by Jack Hughes, who he plays with,” Mike Johnson said on NHL Network in the summer. “They don’t understand how good Nico Hischier is in all areas of the game. That’s what makes him so good. He can play, I guess, the perceived responsible second fiddle to Jack Hughes, but also being a really good offensive player. Basically a point-per-game player. He basically scores 35 or so goals per season playing in every situation.
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 offense for yourself. And he just grows and grows and grows and grows. And as games get tougher and they get tighter and they get to the playoffs, his game translates that. He might not be the tallest guy, but he is incredibly strong and determined on the puck, around the net, around the boards. He’s a coach’s dream that they could just put him in any situation.”
Hischier and his line got off to a hot to the season. He led the league with 10 goals, but his production has cooled off. While he is picking up assists, the goal totals are not. They will come back in time. But again he is the smart and responsible two-way centerman.
Sheldon Keefe is Making Jack Hughes a Well-Rounded Player
However, the Devils may have another one coming. Jack Hughes, for all his flash and dash, is turning into a 200-foot player scouts envisioned he could be when he was drafted first overall in 2019. Devils President and General Manager Tom Fitzgerald joined Jimmy Murphy and Pierre McGuire on the Sick Podcast – Eye Test on Tuesday and praised the defensive play of Jack Hughes.
“He’s come alive. That’s what good teams do, right? Like at the start, Nico was just on fire. He’s playing great hockey, and Jack was trying to find his game, and now Jack has found his game and Nico’s trying to get to the level he is,” Fitzgerald said. “And they just pick each other up, which is what great teammates do, and but no, Jack’s playing, he’s on top of his game.
He’s fun to watch, and he’s improving. You know what? Thing that I’m really impressed with is how much his overall game has improved. Defensively, the efforts the other night against the Islanders. Just the back checking the stripping of pucks. His face offs improving. He’s really starting to turn the corner and be in that 200-foot center that everybody envisioned.”
Remember Jack Hughes has offseason surgery on his shoulder. It took some time for him to get going. One he did, he has 19 points in 19 games including 14 points in his last nine games. So while Hischier is slowing down, Hughes is stepping up.
These two top centers in the league will not allow the New Jersey Devils to not cheat the game. Their play allows the team to stay within the system especially during this big stretch of games. There is a reason why Fitzgerald wanted Sheldon Keefe to be the coach of this team. He knew exactly what he could do to improve the defensive play of Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier.
