NHL Network released its Top-20 defensemen rankings on Wednesday, heading into the 2025-26 season, and once again, Luke Hughes did not appear on the list. The New Jersey Devils did not have a defenseman ranked as a top 20 defenseman heading into this year.
Our Top 20 Defensemen Right Now list has a total of:
• 19 total All-Star Game appearances
• 9 All-Rookie team honors
• 6 James Norris Memorial Trophies
• 2 Calder Trophies
• 2 Conn Smythe Trophies
• 9 Stanley CupsWhat do you think of our list?@NHL | #NHLTopPlayers pic.twitter.com/0MaGYS04de
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 13, 2025
Last year, the Devils had Dougie Hamilton ranked 19th on the NHL Network Top 20 Defensemen rankings. But there was a case last year to be made for Luke Hughes to be a Top 20 defenseman. After the season he had for the New Jersey Devils there was a stronger case than ever.
Do the New Jersey Devils Have One of the Best Tandems in the NHL
With the injuries sustained by Dougie Hamilton and Jonas Siegenthaler last year, it has become clear that Luke Hughes is the Devils number one defenseman. Last season in 71 regular-season games with the club, he recorded 44 points (seven goals and 37 assists), including 16 power-play points (all of them assists). Luke Hughes put up these numbers despite missing the first 11 games with a shoulder injury that he suffered during the offseason.
As Hughes started to find his game, his responsibilities began to grow even more. He was playing in all situations for the Devils, not just quarterbacking the top power play unit, but he was seeing penalty kill time as well. Hughes is eclipsing 50 points and setting new career highs for goals, assists, and points in the regular season if he does not miss the first 11 games of the season.
However, Luke Hughes was limited to only one game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs as he suffered a shoulder injury in Game 1 of Round 1 against the Carolina Hurricanes. The entire Devils defence corps sustained injuries that they could not come back from, despite the valiant effort.
Just What Will Luke Hughes Make on His Next Deal with the New Jersey Devils?
However, you can see that after developing and playing two years of college hockey and playing two seasons in the NHL, there was a reason why the Devils coaching staff trusted him with more minutes and responsibilities when players like Siegenthaler and Hamilton went down to injury.
As former player turned analyst Mike Rupp said on NHL Network, “It is Luke Hughes’s Blueline now.” So if it is his blueline, then he should get the accolades that come with it. We all know about his skating, puck handling, offensive attack, and quarterbacking a power play. But what has been impressive has been his ability to learn on the fly in the defensive zone. Though he may still make some mistakes and turn the puck over, like most defenseman do, he can cover for it. However, that is a habit he will need to break.
There was an expectation that the fourth overall selection from the 2021 NHL Draft would be on NHL Network’s Top 20 defenseman list this year. The experts last season believed Brock Faber would make the list this season. Many have compared Hughes’s contract negotiation to Faber’s, who got an eight-year $68 million extension ($8.5 million AAV) with the Minnesota Wild.
Devils Rumors: Could Luke Hughes Take a Short-Term Deal with New Jersey?
Luke Hughes has yet to sign his extension. With a rising cap, some think he could get more than what Faber is getting even though the Devils want to keep within their salary structure. But it was only going to be tough for Luke Hughes to get into NHL Network’s Top 20 with names like Lane Hutson, Mikhail Sergachev, Jake Sanderson, and Thomas Harley also having good seasons.
Especially Hutson, who plays for the Montreal Canadiens and won the Calder Trophy as NHL Rookie of the Year, tied the NHL record for most assists as a rookie defenseman with 60 and set the Montreal Canadiens rookie record for most points as a defenseman with 66.
However, Hutson’s time will come, but the system Luke Hughes plays in and the time he missed are being held against him. He is already better than some of the players listed this season. Expect him to take the next step this season for the New Jersey Devils and be on the list heading into the 2026-27 season.
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