Will Quinn Hughes surpass (exceed; be greater than) these DMen's careers?
- Thread starter Ben Grimm
- Start date
NyQuil
Big F$&*in Q
You're missing Eddie Gerard, Graham Drinkwater, George Richardson, Dickie Boon and Moose Johnson from your poll options.
tarheelhockey
Offside Review Specialist
Honestly this is a great set of options. I’d have to sit down and spreadsheet these guys to give an informed answer.
He certainly seems on pace to exceed the Brewer, Tremblay, Pronovost tier. As a quick point of reference, that trio spans #34-46 on the History Board’s (aging) list of best defensemen of all time, and that range also includes most of the other guys on this list. Pronovost is the highest ranked of our options at #34. A very quick thumbnail of his career against Hughes:
Pronovost
NHL seasons: 20
Norris record: 2, 3, 3, 5, 5
High ranks among D scorers: 3, 3, 4, 9
Postseason results: Five Stanley Cups
Hughes
NHL seasons: 7
Norris record: 1, 9, 13, 15
High ranks among D scorers: 1, 3, 5, 8
Postseason results: Three playoff series wins
Pronovost was a character player and solid defender, but not a guy whose intangibles are going to be the first thing you talk about. His HHOF argument is mainly about being a consistent offensive D who played a really long time and contributed to a dynasty.
At this point in his career, it’s fair to say Hughes has peaked higher as of age 25. Time will tell if he has the consistency and staying power of Pronovost, and whether he’ll carve out that playoff legacy. There’s still some argument-building on his part before I’d feel confident ranking him over Pronovost, as a couple of huge seasons don’t offset 20 consistent years in the league (it becomes a Mike Green vs Shea Weber argument).
If we trust the HOH board’s list, Hughes will likely rank similarly alongside the other options we’ve been given here. He’s “on pace” to pass them in the sense that most of them were never quite at that level of contending for the title of top D in the world (Stuart and perhaps Patrick could make that claim, but that was a LONG time ago and requires some perspective). However, being “on pace” to do something at age 25 is very different from having actually done it by 40.
He certainly seems on pace to exceed the Brewer, Tremblay, Pronovost tier. As a quick point of reference, that trio spans #34-46 on the History Board’s (aging) list of best defensemen of all time, and that range also includes most of the other guys on this list. Pronovost is the highest ranked of our options at #34. A very quick thumbnail of his career against Hughes:
Pronovost
NHL seasons: 20
Norris record: 2, 3, 3, 5, 5
High ranks among D scorers: 3, 3, 4, 9
Postseason results: Five Stanley Cups
Hughes
NHL seasons: 7
Norris record: 1, 9, 13, 15
High ranks among D scorers: 1, 3, 5, 8
Postseason results: Three playoff series wins
Pronovost was a character player and solid defender, but not a guy whose intangibles are going to be the first thing you talk about. His HHOF argument is mainly about being a consistent offensive D who played a really long time and contributed to a dynasty.
At this point in his career, it’s fair to say Hughes has peaked higher as of age 25. Time will tell if he has the consistency and staying power of Pronovost, and whether he’ll carve out that playoff legacy. There’s still some argument-building on his part before I’d feel confident ranking him over Pronovost, as a couple of huge seasons don’t offset 20 consistent years in the league (it becomes a Mike Green vs Shea Weber argument).
If we trust the HOH board’s list, Hughes will likely rank similarly alongside the other options we’ve been given here. He’s “on pace” to pass them in the sense that most of them were never quite at that level of contending for the title of top D in the world (Stuart and perhaps Patrick could make that claim, but that was a LONG time ago and requires some perspective). However, being “on pace” to do something at age 25 is very different from having actually done it by 40.
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