Quinn Hughes is having a Hart caliber season

[BoHorvat 53]

He's so good that even if he were to request a trade after this season I would have 0 hate for the guy.

People think Canucks fans are being homers, but he just seriously has been that good...

Based off his play this season, I think he's been the 3rd best skater in the league behind McDavid and Draisaitl and just ahead of Kaprizov (Who I'd have 2nd if it weren't for his injury) and Kucherov.

He's on pace for 95 points in 75 games with 23 goals while being elite in his own end, just straight up insane. He has a 23 point lead over 2nd place in points on his team, no team has had a defenseman lead their team in points by 20 or more and even come close to making the playoffs.

 

[wetcoast]

He should repeat as the Norris winner.

Never underestimate the desire voters have to pretend Makar is Orr though.

Quinn is starting to pull away slightly from Makar this season and since he ahs been back his 12-6-10-16 line is tops among NHL Dmen and more importantly when he was out it was obvious how valuable he is to the canucks.

Seriously he should be a Hart contender but Dmen eh.

 

[BoHorvat 53]

"The Hart Memorial Trophy is an annual award given "to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team.""

Going by what the award means, why shouldn't it be Quinn Hughes (Other than the fact that he plays in a time zone during which the East Coast and a lot of Central time zone folks are asleep and don't know how good he's actually been this year)

 

[BertMcDrai]

He's so good that even if he were to request a trade after this season I would have 0 hate for the guy.

People think Canucks fans are being homers, but he just seriously has been that good...

Based off his play this season, I think he's been the 3rd best skater in the league behind McDavid and Draisaitl and just ahead of Kaprizov (Who I'd have 2nd if it weren't for his injury) and Kucherov.

He's on pace for 95 points in 75 games with 23 goals while being elite in his own end, just straight up insane. He has a 23 point lead over 2nd place in points on his team, no team has had a defenseman lead their team in points by 20 or more and even come close to making the playoffs.

He is having a great season and should be considered for Norris and should get some Hart votes.
He is driving the bus there which you can see on the ice and on the sheet... that said there is literally no stat (I haven't found one) that says he is elite defensively and superior to other D in the league...Bouchard for example has a better xGF% 5v5 (that stat includes offense and defense) and he is mainly an offensive player...I would expect Hughes to be above him...even Fox is ahead and his season isn't great.

He is 52nd league wide in xGF% 5v5 (which is good) and 16th among D.

In +/- he is 43rd and 22nd among D.

But nevertheless he is having a great season on a mediocre team (which is playing under their value) and would be my second choice in the Norris race behind Werenski and I would give him also a Top5 Hart vote if I could.

 

[Regal]

He is having a great season and should be considered for Norris and should get some Hart votes.
He is driving the bus there which you can see on the ice and on the sheet... that said there is literally no stat (I haven't found one) that says he is elite defensively and superior to other D in the league...Bouchard for example has a better xGF% 5v5 (that stat includes offense and defense) and he is mainly an offensive player...I would expect Hughes to be above him...even Fox is ahead and his season isn't great.

He is 52nd league wide in xGF% 5v5 (which is good) and 16th among D.

In +/- he is 43rd and 22nd among D.

But nevertheless he is having a great season on a mediocre team (which is playing under their value) and would be my second choice in the Norris race behind Werenski and I would give him also a Top5 Hart vote if I could.

He’s not elite but advanced defensive stat suggests he’s been quite strong defensively. His GAR and regression charts are very good and among 167 defensemen with 500 minutes at 5v5 he’s 20th in xGA/60 with 2.15. His xGF% is great when you consider than his team has been poor. He has the best relxGF% in the league, and his numbers are good regardless of who is on the ice. Bouchard benefits from having McDavid, Draisaitl and a much stronger partner in Ekholm. His xGF% number away from McDavid are still good, but worse than Hughes’ away from Pettersson and Miller. Meanwhile Hronek has missed half the year and Hughes has had to play with Tyler freakin’ Myers for a bunch of the year.

Here’s his GAR chart

And his RAPM chart

 

[BertMcDrai]

He’s not elite but advanced defensive stat suggests he’s been quite strong defensively. His GAR and regression charts are very good and among 167 defensemen with 500 minutes at 5v5 he’s 20th in xGA/60 with 2.15. His xGF% is great when you consider than his team has been poor. He has the best relxGF% in the league, and his numbers are good regardless of who is on the ice. Bouchard benefits from having McDavid, Draisaitl and a much stronger partner in Ekholm. His xGF% number away from McDavid are still good, but worse than Hughes’ away from Pettersson and Miller. Meanwhile Hronek has missed half the year and Hughes has had to play with Tyler freakin’ Myers for a bunch of the year.

Here’s his GAR chart
View attachment 969426

And his RAPM chart

View attachment 969427

I wouldn't argue against that he is having a good defensive season and you shared my opinion that elite defensively is one tier above (which is still quite good when you consider his offense).

Where can I find those relxGF% stats?

 

[centipede2233]

Hughes has evolved into a generational d man.

 

[Felidae]

Chances are, he doesn't even end up as a finalist.

Only 3 defenseman in the history of the game have won it, and only a select few have been hart finalists like bourque, Harvey, I'm sure I'm missing a few

Lidstrom, Potvin, Chelios, Coffey.. though they came close, none of these guys were ever finalists.

I do think Hughes would be a deserving finalist. But quite a few better seasons than the one he's having now never got much hart votes.

 

[nuxnux1]

Chances are, he doesn't even end up as a finalist.

Only 3 defenseman in the history of the game have won it, and only a select few have been hart finalists like bourque, Harvey, I'm sure I'm missing a few

Lidstrom, Potvin, Chelios, Coffey.. though they came close, none of these guys were ever finalists.

I do think Hughes would be a deserving finalist. But quite a few better seasons than the one he's having now never got much hart votes.

Care to list those seasons? The man is leading his team by 23 points in scoring just over half way through the season as a d man, he’s literally dragging this Canucks team that has an ahl defense and headcase 2 best forwards in to the playoff mix. He’s literally having a karlsson 22-23 level season while being elite defensively.

 

[canuckslover10]

Chances are, he doesn't even end up as a finalist.

Only 3 defenseman in the history of the game have won it, and only a select few have been hart finalists like bourque, Harvey, I'm sure I'm missing a few

Lidstrom, Potvin, Chelios, Coffey.. though they came close, none of these guys were ever finalists.

I do think Hughes would be a deserving finalist. But quite a few better seasons than the one he's having now never got much hart votes.

Hughes is at the level.

 

[Eegs]

Chances are, he doesn't even end up as a finalist.

Only 3 defenseman in the history of the game have won it, and only a select few have been hart finalists like bourque, Harvey, I'm sure I'm missing a few

Lidstrom, Potvin, Chelios, Coffey.. though they came close, none of these guys were ever finalists.

I do think Hughes would be a deserving finalist. But quite a few better seasons than the one he's having now never got much hart votes.

I disagree. If he keeps up this pace and the Canucks don't make the playoffs, I can still see him being nominated. His play this season cannot be overlooked.

 

[NyQuil]

He's a man possessed right now. He's having a generational season. When's the last time a defenceman did something comparable? Pls don't mention Karlsson in 22 he was garbage defensively on a last place team.

Karlsson led the Senators in points by 21 over the runner-up (Mark Stone) in 2015-2016 and was 4th in overall NHL league scoring. (Hughes is 12th)

The Senators did not make the playoffs and Karlsson ended up 9th in Hart trophy voting.

 

[Felidae]

Care to list those seasons?

Potvin 1978-79, 7th in scoring, 4th in hart voting, really good defensively

Bourque 1990-91, 11th in scoring, 4th in hart voting, also considered one of the best defensive defenseman

Lidstrom 1999-00, 18th in scoring, 9th in hart voting. Best defensive defenseman of his era.

Are the first 3 that came to mind



And then I won't say this season is necessarily better.. but Coffey in 1994-95 was 6th in scoring, 4th in hart voting. It was a lockout season and Hughes is just 2 games shy of tying Coffey's GP this season so this is a particularly good comp atm to see how he'd fare in hart voting if the season were to end.. Hughes is 13th in scoring.

The man is leading his team by 23 points in scoring just over half way through the season as a d man, he’s literally dragging this Canucks team that has an ahl defense and headcase 2 best forwards in to the playoff mix. He’s literally having a karlsson 22-23 level season while being elite defensively.

I disagree. If he keeps up this pace and the Canucks don't make the playoffs, I can still see him being nominated. His play this season cannot be overlooked.

I will say Hughes leading his team in scoring by a ton increases his hart chances, and I also think with advanced stats, the impact defenseman have on the game is more appreciated, especially with voters who won't take the time to watch too much of a player..

I do think Canucks have to make the POs for him to have a chance though. Many great seasons never received the award recognition they deserved just cause their team wasn't good enough to make the POs.

 

[Phrasing]

Karlsson led the Senators in points by 21 over the runner-up (Mark Stone) in 2015-2016 and was 4th in overall NHL league scoring. (Hughes is 12th)

The Senators did not make the playoffs and Karlsson ended up 9th in Hart trophy voting.

Exactly. This isn’t unprecedented. If no playoffs, he’s not a finalist.

 

[Czechboy]

There is a predictions thread on here from the Athletic (I know it's just one source and things change)

Thread 'The Athletic - NHL awards watch: Leon Draisaitl leads a fascinating MVP field'

Jan 7, 2025

NHL awards watch: Leon Draisaitl leads a fascinating MVP field

...

• 10YearsHaveGone
• Replies: 164
• Forum: National Hockey League Talk

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You could start a who is a better dman thread between Hughes and Makar and the vote would be split pretty evenly. You'd also get the name Werenski tossed in. That would be just for the Norris. Yet Hughes is ahead for the Hart? I doubt he's top 3 when voting is done. I do love how much the Nuck's fans love their player and talk about him here though! So I'll move on and leave it at 'time will tell'. Kaprizov injury definitely helps!

 

[CaviarAndRinkFries]

 

[TheYardMachine]

Imo he is the front runner for the Norris and the Hart

 

[benfranklin]

So overrated. If Petey or Miller did anything this season besides throw shade at eachother, it wouldnt look like Hughes is the only one on this garbage team doing anything.

MVP shouldnt mean the rest of your team sucks so bad, so by default youre the "most valuable". There is a reason none of us considered Karlssons Sharks season Hart caliber.

Eichel, Marner, Makar, Werenski and Hellebuyck are ahead of him for the Hart. Makar and Werenski for the Norris. Both actually play defense and are depended on to play PK time, where the Nucks are scared to put Hughes on for obvious goals against.

 

[Chet Donnelly]

So overrated. If Petey or Miller did anything this season besides throw shade at eachother, it wouldnt look like Hughes is the only one on this garbage team doing anything.

If anything, the fact that their two best forwards are vastly underperforming just makes Hughes' season that much more impressive.

 

[Grifter3511]

So overrated. If Petey or Miller did anything this season besides throw shade at eachother, it wouldnt look like Hughes is the only one on this garbage team doing anything.

MVP shouldnt mean the rest of your team sucks so bad, so by default youre the "most valuable". There is a reason none of us considered Karlssons Sharks season Hart caliber.

Eichel, Marner, Makar, Werenski and Hellebuyck are ahead of him for the Hart. Makar and Werenski for the Norris. Both actually play defense and are depended on to play PK time, where the Nucks are scared to put Hughes on for obvious goals against.

You're totally right. There is a very good reason no one considered Karlsson for the Hart. It's pretty unanimous that the Hart Trophy should go to a player whose team made the playoffs. Others, what actual 'value' is being brought?

Karlsson's sharks finished 29th despite Karlsson's efforts. Hughes' Canucks are in a playoff spot. Significant difference.

It's pretty funny that your argument is based on the Canucks other stars playing so poorly. 'If miller and pettersson had their shit together Hughes wouldn't be the only one doing anything.' Awesome hypothetical. But you're literally proving how valuable Hughes is because the other players are such hot garbage (relatively speaking).

So yeah fair enough. If Miller and Pettersson each had 70 points Hughes wouldn't be considered for the Hart. Hell, I think all Canucks fans would agree with that. Lol

 

[tanti9]

You cannot argue that Hughes has not been exceptional this year and has to be the frontrunner for the Norris and I believe will get Hart votes if he keeps this level of play up. The Norris was Makars at the beginning of the year after his absurd start, but since then he has slowed. Hughes would be top 10 in the NHL in overall scoring if not missing a few games, even so he is pulling ahead of Makar. It is obvious that it is a 3 player race for the Norris (Hughes, Makar and Werenski). There is a good article on Sportsnet by Adam Vingan about Hughes year thus far (How Quinn Hughes is keeping tempestuous Canucks in the playoff race).

Hughes has been the only thing attracting me to watch this team with all the turmoil but he is worth it. God forbid he ever wants out as I doubt Canucks will see another player like this, he makes NHL forwards look like beer leaguers with his edgework and hockey IQ. I cant imagine being a NHL winger coming out to check him and at least trying to contain him lol. He is not perfect but god damn is he a pleasure to watch on the ice. I do think the other 2 dman are great also but if you take into context of what is happening in Vancouver and what Hughes is doing it is mind boggling. I think he will be named captain of USA also for the 4 Nations.

Anyways everyone have a good day and go ahead and "thump your chest in declaring who is better", I will just continue to watch Hughes dominance on the ice and enjoy what he does as I enjoy any other great player like Makar.

 

[RickyLafleur]

There is a predictions thread on here from the Athletic (I know it's just one source and things change)

Thread 'The Athletic - NHL awards watch: Leon Draisaitl leads a fascinating MVP field'

Jan 7, 2025

NHL awards watch: Leon Draisaitl leads a fascinating MVP field

...

• 10YearsHaveGone
• Replies: 164
• Forum: National Hockey League Talk

• 
• 
• 

You could start a who is a better dman thread between Hughes and Makar and the vote would be split pretty evenly. You'd also get the name Werenski tossed in. That would be just for the Norris. Yet Hughes is ahead for the Hart? I doubt he's top 3 when voting is done. I do love how much the Nuck's fans love their player and talk about him here though! So I'll move on and leave it at 'time will tell'. Kaprizov injury definitely helps!

The entire team runs through Hughes and looked completely lifeless when he was injured. Makar has plenty of help while Hughes has nothing except some malcontents that will soon be traded for pennies on the dollar. Does Makar lead his team in scoring by over 20 pts, oh wait, he's over 20 pts behind Mackinnon and he's the favorite for Norris while Hughes gets the same disrespect Karlsson had and I don't understand why.

 

[Chet Donnelly]

I think he will be named captain of USA also for the First Nations.

God damn, I had no idea of his indigenous background!

 

[tanti9]

God damn, I had no idea of his indigenous background!

Lol I changed it (4)..i am a Canadian teacher...always on my mind lol

 

[Czechboy]

gets the same disrespect Karlsson

You are quoting a list that has him 2nd in Norris and 4th in Hart. If you feel that is disrespect than I'd contact that Atheltic. Makar and Hughes is very even. It's like a Roy vs Hasek argument . Both sides are passionate but make no mistake there are 2 sides. My fav D is Bouch so I'm not even on either side as he wont' be winning a Norris anytime soon.lol

If you want to argue most valuable to a team then please tell me what Pastrnak has to work with this season?

21 point lead on Marchand and keeping his team in a playoff spot. He has 8 less points than the 2nd and 3rd scorer combined on his team. Leads in G, A and P's. 21 point lead on 2nd.