Is Quinn Hughes overrated?

[Lawzy]

I think he's -8 against Montréal..

Here are the leaders

• Cale Makar 11
• Jeff Petry 11
• John Carlson 11
• Quinn Hughes 11

Petry is yet to play Ottawa

It balances out since Quinn won't get to play against Vancouver 9 times.


Quinn has definitely been terrible defensively this year. No doubt about it. He (and the team) have been especially poor against Montreal who they've played more than any other team. That being said, Quinn was actually quite fine defensively last year so I'm not worried in the long run. People trash all the various moves Vancouver made during the offseason but most of us would have told you right away the loss of Tanev (Markstrom in the short term as well) was going to be the most impactful. He was a picture perfect partner for Hughes and he's having a hard time adjusting to not having that safety blanket. Also Vancouver's defensive scheme is absolute crap but I won't get into that now.

 

[Canadienna]

He's had some of his career worst games against the Habs this year so it's fair to say I haven't seen enough of his play to make any confident claims.

That said from what I've seen he costs the team defensively as much or more than he contributes offensively. Absolutely a mega talented player, who will get better on the defensive side of the puck as he ages, but right now I feel like he's reinforcing bad habits.

 

[ponder]

Most young dmen are overrated. Defence is the position where all the "little things" that vets learn over time makes the biggest difference. Quinn Hughes is phenomenally talented, he's already a stud offensively, and at some point I do believe he's going to be a really good overall 5v5 dman (and obviously elite on the PP), but he's not there yet. He's currently weak defensively, gets caught out of position and beaten frequently in puck battles, and generally is too ineffective physically - virtually never throws a hit, gets pushed around.

IMO Edler was the most effective 5v5 dman on the Nucks last year, and this year it's been Schmidt. Hughes is better 5v5 than his +/- would suggest, and he certainly makes a TONNE happen offensively. However, I don't think he's even the clear best dman on the Nucks (who have a weak defence), and he's certainly not a Norris candidate. I don't believe you can say with a straight face that his impact is as high re: winning games as guys like Josi, Ellis, Parayko, Makar (rare in how effective he is at such a young age), Hedman, Weber, Petry, McAvoy, Theodore, Pietrangelo, Ekblad, Provorov, etc.

 

[MrThomas]

He is really bad defence player but pretty good at offence!

 

[Northern Avs Fan]

How do you determine if a player is overrated, or underrated?

I thought he was one of the top young defenceman in the league last year, I still believe that.

 

[rypper]

A lot was made about how playing with Hughes gave Chris Tanev one of his best seasons in ages, but really i think the same can be said the other way.

Tanev helped cover Hughes' defensive warts and allowed him to play how he did. The Canucks don't have a partner for Hughes to provide that anymore.

 

[DJJones]

A lot was made about how playing with Hughes gave Chris Tanev one of his best seasons in ages, but really i think the same can be said the other way.

Tanev helped cover Hughes' defensive warts and allowed him to play how he did. The Canucks don't have a partner for Hughes to provide that anymore.

Tanev is making Hanifin look fantastic right now. Might be unfair to Hanifin who is probably grateful to get away from Hamonic, but either way, they look fantastic.

Still haven't let in an even strength goal.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

I wonder sometimes if the main boards are for hockey fans or just people who love the internet and want to be heard.

The number of points he has put up in his first 100 games, without adjusting for era, is top ten all time amongst D and the rest of the list is largely a who's who of hall-of-famers.

But in a bizarre Covid-shortened season without an exhibition, and on a team that is transitioning towards youth and leaning on him to be a number 1 D as a sophomore, he is struggling defensively while simultaneously leading the NHL in points by a defence man at the age of 21.

What a foolish question.

 

[strattonius]

Maybe they're just not that good if they can be game planned around? Do you think teams game plan around McDavid and Draisaitl?

Confirmed Pettersson and Hughes just aren't that good because McDavid and Draisaitl can't be contained.

Thanks for the insight sport.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

Is Pettersson being game planned around too? Is that why he sucks too now? Is the entire Vancouver roster being game planned around?
You realize Vancouver is probably 3-9 or 4-8 right now if they didn't get to play Ottawa 3 times right?

Do you feel that Hughes and Pettersson are slumping young players, or do you think they 'suck'?

Cause if it's the latter, you're absolutely irrelevant on this board.

 

[majormajor]

It balances out since Quinn won't get to play against Vancouver 9 times.

That's true, Quinn is at a disadvantage because he can't rack up points vs himself.

I wonder sometimes if the main boards are for hockey fans or just people who love the internet and want to be heard.

The number of points he has put up in his first 100 games, without adjusting for era, is top ten all time amongst D and the rest of the list is largely a who's who of hall-of-famers.

But in a bizarre Covid-shortened season without an exhibition, and on a team that is transitioning towards youth and leaning on him to be a number 1 D as a sophomore, he is struggling defensively while simultaneously leading the NHL in points by a defence man at the age of 21.

What a foolish question.

I think it's a fine question depending on what your priors are. If you thought he was good defensively too then you should be questioning if he is overrated now. If you didn't already know he was great offensively, then he's definitely not overrated.

 

[Three On Zero]

Hughes and Makar are the next breed of great offensive defenceman, very far off from being overrated

 

[John Eichel da GOAT]

Yes he is IMO, but a lot of his defensive critiques come from the Canucks having no real defensive defensemen on that team. If Hughes was next to a prime Vlasic, those numbers would be different. He is given very sheltered O zone mintues and asked to produce there. The rest of the team has to figure it out to make up for his lack of actual defense.

I also think his points have a lot to do with great offensive players in Vancouver. Until he can do it by himself, I'll always consider him a notch below the big boys. Take notes Quinn:

 

[Muffin]

Do you feel that Hughes and Pettersson are slumping young players, or do you think they 'suck'?

Cause if it's the latter, you're absolutely irrelevant on this board.

Suck no, overrated yes. People talk about Pettersson like he's a top 10 player in the league when has done nothing in his career to warrant that. Hell he hasn't had a point per game season in his life. Vancouver will be safely in 6th place in the North division.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

Suck no, overrated yes. People talk about Pettersson like he's a top 10 player in the league when has done nothing in his career to warrant that. Hell he hasn't had a point per game season in his life. Vancouver will be safely in 6th place in the North division.

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you were one of the last people to 'get the hype' on Pavel Datsyuk as well. Afterall, he never even got 100 points, how good could be be?

 

[Muffin]

I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you were one of the last people to 'get the hype' on Pavel Datsyuk as well. Afterall, he never even got 100 points, how good could be be?

How many Selke votes have Pettersson been nominated for? I'm gonna guess somewhere between 0 and 0. Datsyuk was over a point per game player while winning the Selke 3 times in a row, please don't mention those 2 in the same sentence again.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

How many Selke votes have Pettersson been nominated for? I'm gonna guess somewhere between 0 and 0. Datsyuk was over a point per game player while winning the Selke 3 times in a row, please don't mention those 2 in the same sentence again.

Well, the first time Datsyuk received any votes he finished 20th in voting in his 5th season. So like I said, you were one of the last to 'get it' with Datsyuk too.

 

[Frobbo]

When I watch QH I think of the old adage: It isn't how much money you make, its how much you spend. Citing his O numbers is only telling half the story. Against Ottawa he played on the 3rd d-pairing, extremely sheltered minutes. He was exposed later against the Habs. I think he will improve but I never see him being more than average in his own zone. Thinking there is a lot of upside in his d-work (some never get there Barrie, Gostisbehere, Housley etc) isn't a given. That said, he still brings a lot to the table, it will be fun to see. I think some Canuck fans need to slow their roll on where he ranks.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

dangerous at both ends of the ice

 

[Bizzare]

Is Pettersson being game planned around too? Is that why he sucks too now? Is the entire Vancouver roster being game planned around?
You realize Vancouver is probably 3-9 or 4-8 right now if they didn't get to play Ottawa 3 times right?

You realize you can actually look at their record and remove those three games if you like right? You're just going to add extra losses onto their record for the hell of it?

 

[Bizzare]

Yes he is IMO, but a lot of his defensive critiques come from the Canucks having no real defensive defensemen on that team. If Hughes was next to a prime Vlasic, those numbers would be different. He is given very sheltered O zone mintues and asked to produce there. The rest of the team has to figure it out to make up for his lack of actual defense.

I also think his points have a lot to do with great offensive players in Vancouver. Until he can do it by himself, I'll always consider him a notch below the big boys. Take notes Quinn:

True, Makar does it on a terrible team. Quinn has scored goals on his own as well. Great take.

 

[lawrence]

I don’t think he’s overrated. Right now for whatever reason Montreal is exposing and our lack of structure. He does look weak defensively and he needs to work on it. Part of it I also want to blame the team as a whole. Let’s be honest here , we continue to get badly out shot, as a group and it’s not truly helping, is Quinn to blame? Well no he generates the most offence out of all our players but he needs to also improve defensively.

that said even if he improves right now and able too I think the team still needs to get their 5v5 game better or else we will not make the playoffs.

overrated ? Somewhat

 

[AvsFan29]

Hughes and Makar are the next breed of great offensive defenceman, very far off from being overrated

But Makar is good defensively

 

[BigHitter67]

dangerous at both ends of the ice

lol..love this. So true.. Elite offensive skills . Brutal defender.

Drives me bonkers when I see his name alongside Makars and Heiskanens on the 'top young D ' lists. He is clearly a tier below

 

[John Eichel da GOAT]

True, Makar does it on a terrible team. Quinn has scored goals on his own as well. Great take.

Makar is amazing defensively. The Canucks are not that all that different on O from the Avs. Both rely heavily on their top 4-5 guys and any depth is a bonus. D is where the differences lie and I would argue they've had the better goaltenders last year and this as well.

Also Quinn is more of a passer than a goal scorer. Sure he take shots from the point with his 65 flex stick hoping to get through a screen or tipped, but theyre nothing special and not even in the same stratosphere of that Makar goal I posted.

Hughes draws attention away from the Canucks forwards then gives them good passes. Nothing wrong with that, but his gamebreaking ability, ability to score at will, and pure defense is not there.